Sembrare Conjugation in Italian
sembrare means “to seem” in English, and it is one of the first verbs Italian learners meet — it sits at number 53 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for Italian verbs. It means to seem and to look like something, and it takes essere in the passato prossimo. It is completely regular, and it is often followed by an adjective, as in seeming tired, or by che with a clause. This page gives you the complete conjugation of sembrare — every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle — with notes, examples, common mistakes and a quiz. Here is the verb in a natural sentence: “Io sembro stanco ogni giorno.” — “I seem tired.”
Quick facts
- Infinitive: sembrare
- English: to seem
- Verb type: Regular -are verb
- Irregular in: none — regular in every tense
- Gerund: sembrando
- Present participle: sembrante
- Past participle: sembrato
- Auxiliary: essere (all perfect tenses are formed with essere + the past participle)
- Ending: -are verbs; pattern are in the verified tables
Pronunciation
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for sembrare, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Learn the spelling of the forms first, and listen to a native speaker for the sounds rather than trusting an invented transcription. The forms below are the ones that matter: once you can read sembrare in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.
Three things to remember about sembrare
- It is regular: every form follows the ordinary -are pattern, so once you know the stem you can build the whole table. The only work is learning the endings, not memorising exceptions.
- The perfect tenses use essere: the passato prossimo is formed with essere in the present plus the past participle sembrato. The tables on this page give the participle 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 participles are sembrante and sembrato: keep both in mind as you read the tables, because the present participle appears as an adjective and the past participle appears in every perfect tense. If you know those two forms and the present tense, you already know the skeleton of the whole conjugation.
A note on sembrare
A note on the auxiliary: sembrare takes essere in the passato prossimo — io sono sembrato — and it is often followed by an adjective or by che with a clause.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for sembrare. Learn the present tense first, then the passato prossimo and the imperfect, and add the remaining tenses one at a time.
Present indicative (presente)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sembro |
| tu | sembri |
| lui/lei | sembra |
| noi | sembriamo |
| voi | sembrate |
| loro | sembrano |
The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. For example: “Io sembro stanco ogni giorno.” — “I seem tired”
Passato remoto
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sembrai |
| tu | sembrasti |
| lui/lei | sembrò |
| noi | sembrammo |
| voi | sembraste |
| loro | sembrarono |
The passato remoto is used for completed actions in the distant past, mostly in written and literary Italian and in the south of Italy. For example: “Io sembrai stanco ieri.” — “I seemed tired”
Imperfect (imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sembravo |
| tu | sembravi |
| lui/lei | sembrava |
| noi | sembravamo |
| voi | sembravate |
| loro | sembravano |
The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and for background description. For example: “Io sembravo stanco una volta.” — “I used to seem tired”
Future (futuro semplice)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sembrerò |
| tu | sembrerai |
| lui/lei | sembrerà |
| noi | sembreremo |
| voi | sembrerete |
| loro | sembreranno |
The future is used for what will happen, for predictions and for probability. For example: “Io sembrerò stanco domani.” — “I will seem tired”
Conditional (condizionale)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sembrerei |
| tu | sembreresti |
| lui/lei | sembrerebbe |
| noi | sembreremmo |
| voi | sembrereste |
| loro | sembrerebbero |
The conditional is used for what would happen, for polite requests and for hypothetical situations. For example: “Io sembrerei stanco un giorno.” — “I would seem tired”
Present perfect (passato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sono sembrato |
| tu | sei sembrato |
| lui/lei | è sembrato |
| noi | siamo sembrato |
| voi | siete sembrato |
| loro | sono sembrato |
The passato prossimo is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken Italian. For example: “Lui è sembrato stanco questa settimana.” — “He has seemed tired”
Pluperfect (trapassato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | ero sembrato |
| tu | eri sembrato |
| lui/lei | era sembrato |
| noi | eravamo sembrato |
| voi | eravate sembrato |
| loro | erano sembrato |
The pluperfect is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Io ero sembrato stanco prima della festa.” — “I had seemed tired”
Future perfect (futuro anteriore)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sarò sembrato |
| tu | sarai sembrato |
| lui/lei | sarà sembrato |
| noi | saremo sembrato |
| voi | sarete sembrato |
| loro | saranno sembrato |
The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Io sarò sembrato stanco per domani.” — “I will have seemed tired”
Conditional perfect (condizionale passato)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sarei sembrato |
| tu | saresti sembrato |
| lui/lei | sarebbe sembrato |
| noi | saremmo sembrato |
| voi | sareste sembrato |
| loro | sarebbero sembrato |
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Io sarei sembrato stanco ieri.” — “I would have seemed tired”
Present subjunctive (congiuntivo presente)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sembri |
| tu | sembri |
| lui/lei | sembri |
| noi | sembriamo |
| voi | sembriate |
| loro | sembrino |
The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after che. For example: “È importante che io sembri stanco.” — “It is important that I seem tired”
Imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sembrassi |
| tu | sembrassi |
| lui/lei | sembrasse |
| noi | sembrassimo |
| voi | sembraste |
| loro | sembrassero |
The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past for wishes and hypotheticals after che, and in if-clauses. For example: “Era importante che io sembrassi stanco.” — “It was important that I seem tired”
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | sembra |
| lui/lei | sembri |
| noi | sembriamo |
| voi | sembrate |
| loro | sembrino |
The affirmative imperative is used for direct commands and instructions. For example: “Sembra stanco!” — “Seem tired!”
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | sembrare |
| lui/lei | sembri |
| noi | sembriamo |
| voi | sembriate |
| loro | sembrino |
The negative imperative is used for prohibitions and negative commands. For example: “Non sembrare stanco.” — “Do not seem tired.”
Gerund
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Gerund | sembrando |
The gerund is used for an action happening at the same time as another action, often with stare for the progressive. For example: “Sembrando stanco, imparo molto.” — “While seeming tired, I learn a lot.”
Present participle
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Present participle | sembrante |
The present participle is used as an adjective, describing an ongoing action. For example, the participle sembrante is used to describe something that is happening at the same time as the main action, much like an English -ing adjective.
Past participle
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Past participle | sembrato |
The past participle is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “Io sono sembrato stanco questa settimana.” — “I have seemed tired.”
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with sembrare, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the Italian and try to produce it from the English.
- “Io sembro stanco ogni giorno.” — “I seem tired”
- “Tu sembrasti stanco ieri.” — “You seemed tired”
- “Lui sembrava stanco una volta.” — “He used to seem tired”
- “Io sembrerò stanco domani.” — “I will seem tired”
- “Tu sembreresti stanco un giorno.” — “You would seem tired”
- “Lui è sembrato stanco questa settimana.” — “He has seemed tired”
- “Io ero sembrato stanco prima della festa.” — “I had seemed tired”
- “Tu sarai sembrato stanco per domani.” — “You will have seemed tired”
- “È importante che io sembri stanco.” — “It is important that I seem tired”
- “Sembra stanco!” — “Seem tired!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Io sembrare stanco.”
✓ Right: “Io sembro stanco ogni giorno.”
The infinitive sembrare never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form sembro.
2. Using the wrong person’s form
✗ Wrong: “Io sembri stanco.”
✓ Right: “Io sembro stanco ogni giorno.”
sembri is the tu form, not the io form. Match the verb to the subject every time: io goes with sembro.
3. Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Io sembro stanco ieri.”
✓ Right: “Io sono sembrato stanco questa settimana.”
Yesterday points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the passato prossimo sono sembrato for a finished action yesterday.
4. Using the wrong auxiliary in the passato prossimo
✗ Wrong: “Io ho sembrato stanco.”
✓ Right: “Io sono sembrato stanco questa settimana.”
The passato prossimo of sembrare is formed with essere plus the past participle sembrato: the io form is sono sembrato. Check the auxiliary in the table above before you build a perfect tense.
5. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
✗ Wrong: “È importante che io sembro stanco.”
✓ Right: “È importante che io sembri stanco.”
After è importante che Italian needs the subjunctive, so use sembri here, not the indicative sembro.
6. Using the gerund instead of the past participle in a perfect tense
✗ Wrong: “Io sono sembrando stanco.”
✓ Right: “Io sono sembrato stanco questa settimana.”
The perfect tenses need the past participle sembrato, not the gerund sembrando. The gerund belongs in progressive constructions, never after an auxiliary in a perfect tense.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on sembrare. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the io form of sembrare in the Present indicative?
- A) sembri
- B) sembro
- C) sembra
- D) sembriamo
What is the lui/lei form of sembrare in the Passato remoto?
- A) sembrai
- B) sembrasti
- C) sembrò
- D) sembrammo
What is the noi form of sembrare in the Imperfect?
- A) sembravo
- B) sembravi
- C) sembrava
- D) sembravamo
What is the tu form of sembrare in the Future?
- A) sembrerai
- B) sembrerò
- C) sembrerà
- D) sembreremo
What is the io form of sembrare in the Conditional?
- A) sembreresti
- B) sembrerei
- C) sembrerebbe
- D) sembreremmo
What is the lui/lei form of sembrare in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) sono sembrato
- B) sei sembrato
- C) è sembrato
- D) siamo sembrato
What is the lui/lei form of sembrare in the Present subjunctive?
- A) sembriamo
- B) sembriate
- C) sembrino
- D) sembri
What is the io form of sembrare in the Imperfect subjunctive?
- A) sembrassi
- B) sembrasse
- C) sembrassimo
- D) sembraste
What is the gerund of sembrare?
- A) sembrato
- B) sembrando
- C) sembrare
- D) sembro
What does sembrare mean in English?
- A) to sit down
- B) to get dressed
- C) to seem
- D) to call
Answer key
- B) sembro — the correct form is sembro. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) sembrò — the correct form is sembrò. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) sembravamo — the correct form is sembravamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) sembrerai — the correct form is sembrerai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) sembrerei — the correct form is sembrerei. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) è sembrato — the correct form is è sembrato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) sembri — the correct form is sembri. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) sembrassi — the correct form is sembrassi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) sembrando — the correct form is sembrando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) to seem — the correct form is to seem. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
Frequently asked questions
What does sembrare mean in English?
sembrare means “to seem”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is sembrare regular or irregular?
sembrare is regular: it follows the ordinary -are pattern in every tense. The gerund is sembrando and the past participle is sembrato.
What are the gerund and past participle of sembrare?
The gerund is sembrando — use it with stare for the progressive. The past participle is sembrato — use it with essere for the perfect tenses, as in sono sembrato.
Which auxiliary does sembrare take in the passato prossimo?
sembrare takes essere in the passato prossimo: the io form is sono sembrato. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with essere plus the past participle sembrato.
How do I say “I seem” in Italian?
Say “Io sembro stanco ogni giorno.” — “I seem tired” The io form of the present is sembro, and it is the form you will use most often.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of sembrare — every tense of sembrare in one place.
- Sembrare in the present tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Sembrare examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Italian present tense guide — the full guide to the present tense in Italian.
- Chiamare conjugation — another everyday Italian verb.
- Cercare conjugation — another everyday Italian verb.
- Italian verbs — the full hub of Italian conjugation pages.
- VerbFlow home — all languages, tools and verb lists.
- Verb Conjugator — practise sembrare with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Chart Printer — practise sembrare with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise sembrare with the interactive tool.