Introduction

Rispondere means “to answer”, and this page covers exactly one thing: rispondere 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 rispondere, 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 rispondere in the passato prossimo. It is the verb for answering a question or replying to someone, and its present is regular while its passato remoto and past participle are irregular: the participle is risposto, not a regular -uto form. Learn the participle with the infinitive, as one pair, and the whole perfect system follows. For example: “Lui ha risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “He has answered the question.” Everything on this page uses the forms of rispondere exactly as they are conjugated in the passato prossimo, so you can trust every form you see here.

Rispondere in the Passato prossimo — full table

Person Form
io ho risposto
tu hai risposto
lui/lei ha risposto
noi abbiamo risposto
voi avete risposto
loro hanno risposto
Gerund: rispondendo · Past participle: risposto
The gerund is rispondendo, which you use with stare to say what is happening at the same time as the main action: “Rispondendo alla domanda, imparo molto.” — “While answering the question, I learn a lot.” The past participle is risposto, which you use with avere in the perfect tenses: ho risposto 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 rispondere is used.
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for rispondere, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

How the passato prossimo of rispondere is formed

The passato prossimo of rispondere is formed with the auxiliary avere in the present plus the past participle risposto: io ho risposto, tu hai risposto, lui ha risposto, noi abbiamo risposto, voi avete risposto, loro hanno risposto. 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. The participle is risposto — not a regular -uto form — and the auxiliary is avere: io ho risposto. Learn the participle with the infinitive, as one pair.

Two things about the passato prossimo of rispondere are worth noticing. First, the auxiliary is the whole decision: once you know that rispondere 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 risposto never changes in the tables, the passato prossimo of rispondere 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 rispondere

The passato prossimo is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use rispondere 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 risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “I have answered the question.”

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 risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “He has answered the question.”

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 risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “We have answered the question.”

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 risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “You have answered the question.”

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 risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “They have answered the question.”

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 risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “He has answered the question”
  • Imperfect: “Lui rispondeva alla domanda una volta.” — “He used to answer the question”
  • 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 risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “I have answered the question”
  • Imperfect: “Io rispondevo alla domanda una volta.” — “I used to answer the question”
  • 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 risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “You have answered the question”
  • Imperfect: “Tu rispondevi alla domanda una volta.” — “You used to answer the question”
  • 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: rispondere 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 risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “I have answered the question”
  2. “Tu hai risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “You have answered the question”
  3. “Lui ha risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “He has answered the question”
  4. “Noi abbiamo risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “We have answered the question”
  5. “Voi avete risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “You have answered the question”
  6. “Loro hanno risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “They have answered the question”
  7. “Io ho risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “I have answered the question”
  8. “Lui ha risposto alla domanda questa settimana.” — “He has answered the question”

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

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 rispondere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Answer key

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

Frequently asked questions

What does rispondere mean in English?

rispondere means “to answer”. It is a non-reflexive, irregular -ere verb.

How is the passato prossimo of rispondere formed?

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

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 rispondere?

The gerund is rispondendo and the past participle is risposto. The perfect tenses use avere + risposto.

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