Ricevere Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

ricevere — to receive — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Italian. It is a non-reflexive, regular -ere verb, and it comes up in conversation, at work and at home. It means to receive a letter, a gift or news, and it is completely regular. Its passato remoto uses the -etti forms — io ricevetti — which is the first-listed form in the standard references. On this page you will find ricevere in real sentences, grouped by meaning and tense, two short texts that show it in context, the mistakes learners actually make with it, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Start with the examples, say them aloud, and then test yourself. The full conjugation tables are on the ricevere conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the ricevere present tense page.

Example sentences with ricevere

In the present tense

  • “Io ricevo una lettera ogni giorno.” — “I receive a letter”
  • “Tu ricevi una lettera ogni giorno.” — “You receive a letter”
  • “Lui riceve una lettera ogni giorno.” — “He receives a letter”
  • “Noi riceviamo una lettera ogni giorno.” — “We receive a letter”
  • “Voi ricevete una lettera ogni giorno.” — “You receive a letter”
  • “Loro ricevono una lettera ogni giorno.” — “They receive a letter”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io ho ricevuto una lettera questa settimana.” — “I have received a letter”
  • “Tu hai ricevuto una lettera questa settimana.” — “You have received a letter”
  • “Lui ha ricevuto una lettera questa settimana.” — “He has received a letter”
  • “Noi abbiamo ricevuto una lettera questa settimana.” — “We have received a letter”
  • “Voi avete ricevuto una lettera questa settimana.” — “You have received a letter”
  • “Loro hanno ricevuto una lettera questa settimana.” — “They have received a letter”

In other tenses

The same verb in the imperfect, the future, the conditional, the present subjunctive and the imperative — the tenses that complete the picture. All forms come from the verified tables.

  • “Io ricevevo una lettera una volta.” — “I used to receive a letter”
  • “Tu riceverai una lettera domani.” — “You will receive a letter”
  • “Lui riceverebbe una lettera un giorno.” — “He would receive a letter”
  • “È importante che noi riceviamo una lettera.” — “It is important that we receive a letter”
  • “Ricevi una lettera!” — “Receive a letter!”

How ricevere is used

The first thing to know about ricevere is its core meaning: to receive. It means to receive a letter, a gift or news, and it is completely regular. Its passato remoto uses the -etti forms — io ricevetti — which is the first-listed form in the standard references. In everyday speech it appears most often in the present and the passato prossimo, the two tenses on this page, because most of what we say is either what we do every day or what we have just done. Learn those two tenses first and the rest of the conjugation becomes a matter of adding forms one at a time. The second thing to know is the company ricevere keeps. The present io form is ricevo, and it pairs naturally with the time words ogni giorno and sempre for habits, and with adesso for what is happening right now. The passato prossimo io form is ho ricevuto, and it pairs with ieri and questa settimana for finished actions. When you learn a verb form, learn its time words with it, and choosing the tense becomes automatic. The third thing to know is what ricevere does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need ricevo, never ricevere. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is ho ricevuto, built with avere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle ricevuto is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Ricevere in context

Io ricevo una lettera ogni giorno. Tu ricevi una lettera ogni giorno. Lui riceve una lettera ogni giorno. Noi riceviamo una lettera ogni giorno. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of ricevere is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — ricevo, ricevi, riceve, riceviamo — while the meaning stays the same: to receive. Io ho ricevuto una lettera questa settimana. Tu hai ricevuto una lettera questa settimana. Lui ha ricevuto una lettera questa settimana. Noi abbiamo ricevuto una lettera questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of ricevere appears constantly: a finished action, a precise moment, and the story goes on. Compare these sentences with the present ones above: the verb changes tense, but the basic meaning — to receive — does not change. That is the difference between a habit and a finished event.

Common mistakes

1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Io ricevere una lettera.”

✓ Right: “Io ricevo una lettera ogni giorno.”

The infinitive ricevere never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form ricevo.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io ricevi una lettera.”

✓ Right: “Io ricevo una lettera ogni giorno.”

ricevi is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is ricevo — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io ricevo una lettera ieri.”

✓ Right: “Io ho ricevuto una lettera questa settimana.”

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo ho ricevuto here, not the present ricevo.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Io sono ricevuto una lettera.”

✓ Right: “Io ho ricevuto una lettera questa settimana.”

ricevere takes avere in the passato prossimo. The io form is ho ricevuto — the other auxiliary never belongs with this verb.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on ricevere across the tenses. Answers with explanations follow each question.

  1. What is the tu form of ricevere in the Present indicative?

    • A) ricevo
    • B) ricevi
    • C) riceve
    • D) riceviamo

  2. What is the io form of ricevere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

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

  3. What is the lui/lei form of ricevere in the Imperfect?

    • A) ricevevo
    • B) ricevevi
    • C) ricevevamo
    • D) riceveva

  4. What is the noi form of ricevere in the Future?

    • A) riceveremo
    • B) riceverò
    • C) riceverai
    • D) riceverà

  5. What is the tu form of ricevere in the Conditional?

    • A) riceverei
    • B) riceveresti
    • C) riceverebbe
    • D) riceveremmo

  6. What is the io form of ricevere in the Passato remoto?

    • A) ricevesti
    • B) ricevette
    • C) ricevetti
    • D) ricevemmo

  7. What is the noi form of ricevere in the Present subjunctive?

    • A) riceva
    • B) riceviate
    • C) ricevano
    • D) riceviamo

  8. What is the gerund of ricevere?

    • A) ricevendo
    • B) ricevuto
    • C) ricevere
    • D) ricevo

  9. What is the past participle of ricevere?

    • A) ricevendo
    • B) ricevuto
    • C) ricevere
    • D) ricevo

  10. What does ricevere mean in English?

  • A) to sit down
  • B) to get dressed
  • C) to receive
  • D) to call

Answer key

  1. B) ricevi — the correct form is ricevi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) ho ricevuto — the correct form is ho ricevuto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) riceveva — the correct form is riceveva. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) riceveremo — the correct form is riceveremo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) riceveresti — the correct form is riceveresti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) ricevetti — the correct form is ricevetti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) riceviamo — the correct form is riceviamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) ricevendo — the correct form is ricevendo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) ricevuto — the correct form is ricevuto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to receive — the correct form is to receive. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does ricevere mean in English?

ricevere means “to receive”. You use it whenever you talk about to receive in Italian, in the present, the past and the future.

Is ricevere regular or irregular?

ricevere is regular. ricevere is regular: every form follows the standard -ere endings, so once you know the pattern you can build every tense from the stem.

What are the gerund and past participle of ricevere?

The gerund is ricevendo and the past participle is ricevuto. The perfect tenses use avere + ricevuto.

Where can I see the full conjugation of ricevere?

On the ricevere conjugation page — every tense, every person, with tables. The ricevere present tense page goes deeper into its most practised tense.

Pronunciation

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for ricevere, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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