Introduction

Scendere means “to go down”, and this page covers exactly one thing: scendere 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 scendere, 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 scendere in the passato prossimo. It is the verb for going down, getting off a train or coming downstairs, and its present is regular while its passato remoto and past participle are irregular: the participle is sceso and the remoto is scesi. It takes essere in the passato prossimo, and its opposite is salire. For example: “Lui è sceso questa settimana.” — “He has gone down.” Everything on this page uses the forms of scendere exactly as they are conjugated in the passato prossimo, so you can trust every form you see here.

Scendere in the Passato prossimo — full table

Person Form
io sono sceso
tu sei sceso
lui/lei è sceso
noi siamo sceso
voi siete sceso
loro sono sceso
Gerund: scendendo · Past participle: sceso
The gerund is scendendo, which you use with stare to say what is happening at the same time as the main action: “Scendendo, imparo molto.” — “While going down, I learn a lot.” The past participle is sceso, which you use with essere in the perfect tenses: sono sceso 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 scendere is used.
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for scendere, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

How the passato prossimo of scendere is formed

The passato prossimo of scendere is formed with the auxiliary essere in the present plus the past participle sceso: io sono sceso, tu sei sceso, lui è sceso, noi siamo sceso, voi siete sceso, loro sono sceso. 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 sceso — not a regular -uto form — and the auxiliary is essere: io sono sceso. Learn the participle with the infinitive, as one pair.

Two things about the passato prossimo of scendere are worth noticing. First, the auxiliary is the whole decision: once you know that scendere takes essere, the rest is the present of essere 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 sceso never changes in the tables, the passato prossimo of scendere 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 scendere

The passato prossimo is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use scendere 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 sono sceso questa settimana.” — “I have gone down.”

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 è sceso questa settimana.” — “He has gone down.”

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 siamo sceso questa settimana.” — “We have gone down.”

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 sei sceso questa settimana.” — “You have gone down.”

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 sono sceso questa settimana.” — “They have gone down.”

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 è sceso questa settimana.” — “He has gone down”
  • Imperfect: “Lui scendeva una volta.” — “He used to go down”
  • 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 sono sceso questa settimana.” — “I have gone down”
  • Imperfect: “Io scendevo una volta.” — “I used to go down”
  • 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 sei sceso questa settimana.” — “You have gone down”
  • Imperfect: “Tu scendevi una volta.” — “You used to go down”
  • 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: scendere 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 sono sceso questa settimana.” — “I have gone down”
  2. “Tu sei sceso questa settimana.” — “You have gone down”
  3. “Lui è sceso questa settimana.” — “He has gone down”
  4. “Noi siamo sceso questa settimana.” — “We have gone down”
  5. “Voi siete sceso questa settimana.” — “You have gone down”
  6. “Loro sono sceso questa settimana.” — “They have gone down”
  7. “Io sono sceso questa settimana.” — “I have gone down”
  8. “Lui è sceso questa settimana.” — “He has gone down”

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

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 scendere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) sei sceso
    • B) sono sceso
    • C) è sceso
    • D) siamo sceso

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

    • A) sono sceso
    • B) è sceso
    • C) sei sceso
    • D) siamo sceso

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

    • A) sono sceso
    • B) sei sceso
    • C) siamo sceso
    • D) è sceso

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

    • A) siamo sceso
    • B) sono sceso
    • C) sei sceso
    • D) è sceso

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

    • A) sono sceso
    • B) siete sceso
    • C) sei sceso
    • D) è sceso

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

    • A) sei sceso
    • B) è sceso
    • C) sono sceso
    • D) siamo sceso

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

    • A) sei sceso
    • B) è sceso
    • C) siamo sceso
    • D) sono sceso

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

    • A) sei sceso
    • B) sono sceso
    • C) è sceso
    • D) siamo sceso

Answer key

  1. B) sono sceso — the correct form is sono sceso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) sei sceso — the correct form is sei sceso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) è sceso — the correct form is è sceso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) siamo sceso — the correct form is siamo sceso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) siete sceso — the correct form is siete sceso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) sono sceso — the correct form is sono sceso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) sono sceso — the correct form is sono sceso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) sei sceso — the correct form is sei sceso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does scendere mean in English?

scendere means “to go down”. It is a non-reflexive, irregular -ere verb.

How is the passato prossimo of scendere formed?

With the auxiliary essere in the present plus the past participle sceso: io sono sceso, tu sei sceso, lui è sceso, noi siamo sceso, voi siete sceso, loro sono sceso.

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 scendere?

The gerund is scendendo and the past participle is sceso. The perfect tenses use essere + sceso.

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