Introduction

Prendere means “to take”, and this page covers exactly one thing: prendere in the passato prossimo. The passato prossimo is the tense Italian speakers reach for when they talk about one finished action in the past, especially in conversation. On this page you will find the full passato prossimo table for prendere, how the tense is formed for this verb, the situations where it is used, how it differs from the imperfect, worked examples, the mistakes learners make most often, an eight-question quiz with explained answers, and answers to the questions students ask about prendere in the passato prossimo. It means to take, to get and to catch, and it covers taking a coffee, taking a train and taking an object from a table. Its passato remoto and past participle are irregular, while the present is regular apart from the doubled consonant in the third-person plural. For example: “Lui ha preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “He has taken a coffee.” Everything on this page uses the forms of prendere exactly as they are conjugated in the passato prossimo, so you can trust every form you see here.

Prendere in the Passato prossimo — full table

Person Form
io ho preso
tu hai preso
lui/lei ha preso
noi abbiamo preso
voi avete preso
loro hanno preso
Gerund: prendendo · Past participle: preso
The gerund is prendendo, which you use with stare to say what is happening at the same time as the main action: “Prendendo un caffè, imparo molto.” — “While taking a coffee, I learn a lot.” The past participle is preso, which you use with avere in the perfect tenses: ho preso is the passato prossimo, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the passato prossimo is only one part of how prendere is used.
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for prendere, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

How the passato prossimo of prendere is formed

The passato prossimo of prendere is formed with the auxiliary avere in the present plus the past participle preso: io ho preso, tu hai preso, lui ha preso, noi abbiamo preso, voi avete preso, loro hanno preso. The participle is given here in the masculine singular form, exactly as it appears in the verified dump; agreement with the subject is a separate step that depends on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Two things about the passato prossimo of prendere are worth noticing. First, the auxiliary is the whole decision: once you know that prendere takes avere, the rest is the present of avere plus one participle, and the same participle serves all four perfect tenses. Second, the passato prossimo is the tense of finished events with a clear result, so it pairs naturally with time words such as ieri, questa settimana and l'anno scorso — those time words are your best clue when you are choosing a tense.

Because the participle preso never changes in the tables, the passato prossimo of prendere is cheap to learn once the auxiliary is fixed. Learn the six auxiliary forms, add the participle, and the whole tense is yours.

When to use the passato prossimo of prendere

The passato prossimo is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use prendere in the passato prossimo most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.

1. One finished action

The passato prossimo describes a single action that is finished, especially in spoken Italian. When the action has a clear end, the passato prossimo is the natural choice. Example: “Io ho preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “I have taken a coffee.”

2. Recent events

Use the passato prossimo for things that happened recently — today, this week, this morning — where the result is still visible in the present. Example: “Lui ha preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “He has taken a coffee.”

3. A sequence of events

When you tell what happened first, second and third, each step takes the passato prossimo. The tense moves the story forward one finished action at a time. Example: “Noi abbiamo preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “We have taken a coffee.”

4. An experience in your life

Use the passato prossimo for things you have done in your life, with or without a time expression. It is the tense of experience as much as of yesterday. Example: “Tu hai preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “You have taken a coffee.”

5. News and results

When you report news or a result, the passato prossimo carries it: something happened, and now the situation is different. The result matters more than the process. Example: “Loro hanno preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “They have taken a coffee.”

Passato Prossimo vs Imperfect: how to choose

The closest tense to the passato prossimo is the imperfect, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the passato prossimo describes one finished action, while the imperfect describes an ongoing or habitual action in the past, or the background of a scene. The three pairs below use the same verb, so the only thing that changes is the time frame — and with it, the tense. Notice how the passato prossimo sentences use words such as ieri or questa settimana, while the imperfect sentences use una volta or ogni giorno.

  • Passato Prossimo: “Lui ha preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “He has taken a coffee”
  • Imperfect: “Lui prendeva un caffè una volta.” — “He used to take a coffee”
  • The passato prossimo sentence is one finished event; the imperfect sentence is an ongoing or habitual past action. Ieri points to the passato prossimo, una volta points to the imperfect.
  • Passato Prossimo: “Io ho preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “I have taken a coffee”
  • Imperfect: “Io prendevo un caffè una volta.” — “I used to take a coffee”
  • The passato prossimo sentence is one finished event; the imperfect sentence is an ongoing or habitual past action. Ieri points to the passato prossimo, una volta points to the imperfect.
  • Passato Prossimo: “Tu hai preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “You have taken a coffee”
  • Imperfect: “Tu prendevi un caffè una volta.” — “You used to take a coffee”
  • The passato prossimo sentence is one finished event; the imperfect sentence is an ongoing or habitual past action. Ieri points to the passato prossimo, una volta points to the imperfect.

Example sentences: prendere in the passato prossimo

Read these eight sentences out loud. They cover all six persons, so by the end you will have seen every form in the table used in a real sentence. Pay attention to the words around the verb — the time expressions and the objects — because those are what make each sentence sound natural.

  1. “Io ho preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “I have taken a coffee”
  2. “Tu hai preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “You have taken a coffee”
  3. “Lui ha preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “He has taken a coffee”
  4. “Noi abbiamo preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “We have taken a coffee”
  5. “Voi avete preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “You have taken a coffee”
  6. “Loro hanno preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “They have taken a coffee”
  7. “Io ho preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “I have taken a coffee”
  8. “Lui ha preso un caffè questa settimana.” — “He has taken a coffee”

Common mistakes

These are the errors learners actually make with this verb in this tense. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.

  • Wrong: “Io sono preso un caffè.” Right: “Io ho preso un caffè questa settimana.” Why: prendere takes avere in the passato prossimo, not the other auxiliary. The io form is ho preso — check the auxiliary before you build the tense.
  • Wrong: “Io prendo un caffè ieri.” Right: “Io ho preso un caffè questa settimana.” Why: Ieri points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the passato prossimo ho preso for a finished action yesterday.
  • Wrong: “Io ho prendendo un caffè.” Right: “Io ho preso un caffè questa settimana.” Why: The passato prossimo needs the past participle preso, not the gerund prendendo. The gerund belongs in progressive constructions, never after an auxiliary.
  • Wrong: “Io prendere un caffè.” Right: “Io ho preso un caffè questa settimana.” Why: The infinitive prendere never takes a subject and never forms a past tense on its own. After io you need the conjugated passato prossimo form ho preso.

Quiz: test yourself

Choose the correct answer for each question, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained, so a wrong answer still teaches you something.

  1. What is the io form of prendere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) hai preso
    • B) ho preso
    • C) ha preso
    • D) abbiamo preso

  2. What is the tu form of prendere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) ho preso
    • B) ha preso
    • C) hai preso
    • D) abbiamo preso

  3. What is the lui/lei form of prendere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) ho preso
    • B) hai preso
    • C) abbiamo preso
    • D) ha preso

  4. What is the noi form of prendere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) abbiamo preso
    • B) ho preso
    • C) hai preso
    • D) ha preso

  5. What is the voi form of prendere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) ho preso
    • B) avete preso
    • C) hai preso
    • D) ha preso

  6. What is the loro form of prendere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) ho preso
    • B) hai preso
    • C) hanno preso
    • D) ha preso

  7. What is the io form of prendere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) hai preso
    • B) ha preso
    • C) abbiamo preso
    • D) ho preso

  8. What is the tu form of prendere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) hai preso
    • B) ho preso
    • C) ha preso
    • D) abbiamo preso

Answer key

  1. B) ho preso — the correct form is ho preso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) hai preso — the correct form is hai preso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) ha preso — the correct form is ha preso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) abbiamo preso — the correct form is abbiamo preso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) avete preso — the correct form is avete preso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) hanno preso — the correct form is hanno preso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) ho preso — the correct form is ho preso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) hai preso — the correct form is hai preso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does prendere mean in English?

prendere means “to take”. It is a non-reflexive, irregular -ere verb.

How is the passato prossimo of prendere formed?

With the auxiliary avere in the present plus the past participle preso: io ho preso, tu hai preso, lui ha preso, noi abbiamo preso, voi avete preso, loro hanno preso.

When do I use the passato prossimo instead of the imperfect?

Use the passato prossimo for one finished action in the past. Use the imperfect for an ongoing or habitual past action, or for background description. The time words are your best clue: ieri points to the passato prossimo, una volta points to the imperfect.

What are the gerund and past participle of prendere?

The gerund is prendendo and the past participle is preso. The perfect tenses use avere + preso.

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