Stare Conjugation in Italian
stare means “to stay” in English, and it is one of the first verbs Italian learners meet — it sits at number 64 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for Italian verbs. It means to stay and to be in a place, and it is also the verb of the progressive construction stare plus gerund, the Italian way of saying what someone is doing right now. It takes essere in the passato prossimo, and its present and passato remoto are irregular. This page gives you the complete conjugation of stare — 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 sto a casa ogni giorno.” — “I stay at home.”
Quick facts
- Infinitive: stare
- English: to stay
- Verb type: Irregular -are verb
- Irregular in: present, passato-remoto, future, conditional, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, present-subjunctive, imperfect-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative
- Gerund: stando
- Present participle: stante
- Past participle: stato
- 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 stare, 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 stare in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.
Three things to remember about stare
- It is irregular in 10 tense(s): present, passato-remoto, future, conditional, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, present-subjunctive, imperfect-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative. Learn those forms as a set instead of guessing them from the infinitive, because the stem changes in ways no rule predicts.
- The perfect tenses use essere: the passato prossimo is formed with essere in the present plus the past participle stato. 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 stante and stato: 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.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for stare. 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 | sto |
| tu | stai |
| lui/lei | sta |
| noi | stiamo |
| voi | state |
| loro | stanno |
The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. For example: “Io sto a casa ogni giorno.” — “I stay at home”
Passato remoto
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | stetti |
| tu | stesti |
| lui/lei | stette |
| noi | stemmo |
| voi | steste |
| loro | stettero |
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 stetti a casa ieri.” — “I stayed at home”
Imperfect (imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | stavo |
| tu | stavi |
| lui/lei | stava |
| noi | stavamo |
| voi | stavate |
| loro | stavano |
The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and for background description. For example: “Io stavo a casa una volta.” — “I used to stay at home”
Future (futuro semplice)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | starò |
| tu | starai |
| lui/lei | starà |
| noi | staremo |
| voi | starete |
| loro | staranno |
The future is used for what will happen, for predictions and for probability. For example: “Io starò a casa domani.” — “I will stay at home”
Conditional (condizionale)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | starei |
| tu | staresti |
| lui/lei | starebbe |
| noi | staremmo |
| voi | stareste |
| loro | starebbero |
The conditional is used for what would happen, for polite requests and for hypothetical situations. For example: “Io starei a casa un giorno.” — “I would stay at home”
Present perfect (passato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sono stato |
| tu | sei stato |
| lui/lei | è stato |
| noi | siamo stato |
| voi | siete stato |
| loro | sono stato |
The passato prossimo is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken Italian. For example: “Lui è stato a casa questa settimana.” — “He has stayed at home”
Pluperfect (trapassato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | ero stato |
| tu | eri stato |
| lui/lei | era stato |
| noi | eravamo stato |
| voi | eravate stato |
| loro | erano stato |
The pluperfect is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Io ero stato a casa prima della festa.” — “I had stayed at home”
Future perfect (futuro anteriore)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sarò stato |
| tu | sarai stato |
| lui/lei | sarà stato |
| noi | saremo stato |
| voi | sarete stato |
| loro | saranno stato |
The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Io sarò stato a casa per domani.” — “I will have stayed at home”
Conditional perfect (condizionale passato)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | sarei stato |
| tu | saresti stato |
| lui/lei | sarebbe stato |
| noi | saremmo stato |
| voi | sareste stato |
| loro | sarebbero stato |
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Io sarei stato a casa ieri.” — “I would have stayed at home”
Present subjunctive (congiuntivo presente)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | stia |
| tu | stia |
| lui/lei | stia |
| noi | stiamo |
| voi | stiate |
| loro | stiano |
The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after che. For example: “È importante che io stia a casa.” — “It is important that I stay at home”
Imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | stessi |
| tu | stessi |
| lui/lei | stesse |
| noi | stessimo |
| voi | steste |
| loro | stessero |
The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past for wishes and hypotheticals after che, and in if-clauses. For example: “Era importante che io stessi a casa.” — “It was important that I stay at home”
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | stai |
| lui/lei | stia |
| noi | stiamo |
| voi | state |
| loro | stiano |
The affirmative imperative is used for direct commands and instructions. For example: “Stai a casa!” — “Stay at home!”
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | stare |
| lui/lei | stia |
| noi | stiamo |
| voi | stiate |
| loro | stiano |
The negative imperative is used for prohibitions and negative commands. For example: “Non stare a casa.” — “Do not stay at home.”
Gerund
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Gerund | stando |
The gerund is used for an action happening at the same time as another action, often with stare for the progressive. For example: “Stando a casa, imparo molto.” — “While staying at home, I learn a lot.”
Present participle
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Present participle | stante |
The present participle is used as an adjective, describing an ongoing action. For example, the participle stante 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 | stato |
The past participle is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “Io sono stato a casa questa settimana.” — “I have stayed at home.”
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with stare, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the Italian and try to produce it from the English.
- “Io sto a casa ogni giorno.” — “I stay at home”
- “Tu stesti a casa ieri.” — “You stayed at home”
- “Lui stava a casa una volta.” — “He used to stay at home”
- “Io starò a casa domani.” — “I will stay at home”
- “Tu staresti a casa un giorno.” — “You would stay at home”
- “Lui è stato a casa questa settimana.” — “He has stayed at home”
- “Io ero stato a casa prima della festa.” — “I had stayed at home”
- “Tu sarai stato a casa per domani.” — “You will have stayed at home”
- “È importante che io stia a casa.” — “It is important that I stay at home”
- “Stai a casa!” — “Stay at home!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Io stare a casa.”
✓ Right: “Io sto a casa ogni giorno.”
The infinitive stare never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form sto.
2. Using the wrong person’s form
✗ Wrong: “Io stai a casa.”
✓ Right: “Io sto a casa ogni giorno.”
stai is the tu form, not the io form. Match the verb to the subject every time: io goes with sto.
3. Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Io sto a casa ieri.”
✓ Right: “Io sono stato a casa questa settimana.”
Yesterday points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the passato prossimo sono stato for a finished action yesterday.
4. Using the wrong auxiliary in the passato prossimo
✗ Wrong: “Io ho stato a casa.”
✓ Right: “Io sono stato a casa questa settimana.”
The passato prossimo of stare is formed with essere plus the past participle stato: the io form is sono stato. 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 sto a casa.”
✓ Right: “È importante che io stia a casa.”
After è importante che Italian needs the subjunctive, so use stia here, not the indicative sto.
6. Using the gerund instead of the past participle in a perfect tense
✗ Wrong: “Io sono stando a casa.”
✓ Right: “Io sono stato a casa questa settimana.”
The perfect tenses need the past participle stato, not the gerund stando. The gerund belongs in progressive constructions, never after an auxiliary in a perfect tense.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on stare. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the io form of stare in the Present indicative?
- A) stai
- B) sto
- C) sta
- D) stiamo
What is the lui/lei form of stare in the Passato remoto?
- A) stetti
- B) stesti
- C) stette
- D) stemmo
What is the noi form of stare in the Imperfect?
- A) stavo
- B) stavi
- C) stava
- D) stavamo
What is the tu form of stare in the Future?
- A) starai
- B) starò
- C) starà
- D) staremo
What is the io form of stare in the Conditional?
- A) staresti
- B) starei
- C) starebbe
- D) staremmo
What is the lui/lei form of stare in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) sono stato
- B) sei stato
- C) è stato
- D) siamo stato
What is the lui/lei form of stare in the Present subjunctive?
- A) stiamo
- B) stiate
- C) stiano
- D) stia
What is the io form of stare in the Imperfect subjunctive?
- A) stessi
- B) stesse
- C) stessimo
- D) steste
What is the gerund of stare?
- A) stato
- B) stando
- C) stare
- D) sto
What does stare mean in English?
- A) to be
- B) to have
- C) to stay
- D) to do, to make
Answer key
- B) sto — the correct form is sto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) stette — the correct form is stette. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) stavamo — the correct form is stavamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) starai — the correct form is starai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) starei — the correct form is starei. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) è stato — the correct form is è stato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) stia — the correct form is stia. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) stessi — the correct form is stessi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) stando — the correct form is stando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) to stay — the correct form is to stay. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
Frequently asked questions
What does stare mean in English?
stare means “to stay”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is stare regular or irregular?
stare is irregular: it is irregular in present, passato-remoto, future, conditional, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, present-subjunctive, imperfect-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative. The gerund is stando and the past participle is stato.
What are the gerund and past participle of stare?
The gerund is stando — use it with stare for the progressive. The past participle is stato — use it with essere for the perfect tenses, as in sono stato.
Which auxiliary does stare take in the passato prossimo?
stare takes essere in the passato prossimo: the io form is sono stato. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with essere plus the past participle stato.
How do I say “I stay” in Italian?
Say “Io sto a casa ogni giorno.” — “I stay at home” The io form of the present is sto, and it is the form you will use most often.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of stare — every tense of stare in one place.
- Stare in the passato prossimo tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Stare examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Italian passato prossimo tense guide — the full guide to the passato prossimo tense in Italian.
- Italian irregular verbs — every common irregular Italian verb, grouped by pattern.
- Fare conjugation — another everyday Italian verb.
- Andare 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 stare with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Chart Printer — practise stare with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise stare with the interactive tool.