Succedere Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian
succedere — to happen — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Italian. It is a non-reflexive, irregular -ere verb, and it comes up in conversation, at work and at home. It means to happen, and it is used impersonally: the real use is the third person, as in 'Mi succede spesso' — it happens to me often — with the person as an indirect object pronoun. It takes essere in the passato prossimo, and its past participle is successo. On this page you will find succedere 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 succedere conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the succedere passato prossimo tense page.
Example sentences with succedere
In the present tense
- “Mi succede ogni giorno.” — “It happens to me”
- “Ti succede ogni giorno.” — “It happens to you”
- “Gli succede ogni giorno.” — “It happens to him”
- “Ci succede ogni giorno.” — “It happens to us”
- “Vi succede ogni giorno.” — “It happens to you”
- “Gli succede ogni giorno.” — “It happens to them”
In the passato prossimo
- “Mi è successo questa settimana.” — “It has happened to me”
- “Ti è successo questa settimana.” — “It has happened to you”
- “Gli è successo questa settimana.” — “It has happened to him”
- “Ci è successo questa settimana.” — “It has happened to us”
- “Vi è successo questa settimana.” — “It has happened to you”
- “Gli è successo questa settimana.” — “It has happened to them”
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.
- “Mi succedeva una volta.” — “It used to happen to me”
- “Ti succederà domani.” — “It will happen to you”
- “Gli succederebbe un giorno.” — “It would happen to him”
- “È importante che ci succeda.” — “It is important that it happens to us”
- “Succeda!” — “Let it happen!”
How succedere is used
The first thing to know about succedere is its core meaning: to happen. It means to happen, and it is used impersonally: the real use is the third person, as in 'Mi succede spesso' — it happens to me often — with the person as an indirect object pronoun. It takes essere in the passato prossimo, and its past participle is successo. 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 that succedere is used impersonally, in the third person: the tables on this page give all six persons as the verb is listed, but real sentences use the third-person forms with an indirect object pronoun or an infinitive. The passato prossimo form is sono successo, built with essere plus the participle successo, and the time words that go with it are the same as for any other verb: ieri and questa settimana for finished actions, ogni giorno and sempre for habits. The third thing to know is what succedere does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need succedo, never succedere. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is sono successo, built with essere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle successo is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.
Succedere in context
Mi succede ogni giorno. Ti succede ogni giorno. Gli succede ogni giorno. Ci succede ogni giorno. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of succedere is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — succedo, succedi, succede, succediamo — while the meaning stays the same: to happen. Mi è successo questa settimana. Ti è successo questa settimana. Gli è successo questa settimana. Ci è successo questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of succedere 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 happen — 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 succedere.”
✓ Right: “Mi succede ogni giorno.”
The infinitive succedere never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form succedo.
2. Using the wrong person
✗ Wrong: “Io succedi.”
✓ Right: “Mi succede ogni giorno.”
succedi is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is succedo — check the person before you write the form.
3. Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Io succedo ieri.”
✓ Right: “Mi è successo questa settimana.”
Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo sono successo here, not the present succedo.
4. Mixing up the auxiliary
✗ Wrong: “Io ho successo.”
✓ Right: “Mi è successo questa settimana.”
succedere takes essere in the passato prossimo. The io form is sono successo — the other auxiliary never belongs with this verb.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on succedere across the tenses. Answers with explanations follow each question.
What is the tu form of succedere in the Present indicative?
- A) succedo
- B) succedi
- C) succede
- D) succediamo
What is the io form of succedere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) sei successo
- B) è successo
- C) sono successo
- D) siamo successo
What is the lui/lei form of succedere in the Imperfect?
- A) succedevo
- B) succedevi
- C) succedevamo
- D) succedeva
What is the noi form of succedere in the Future?
- A) succederemo
- B) succederò
- C) succederai
- D) succederà
What is the tu form of succedere in the Conditional?
- A) succederei
- B) succederesti
- C) succederebbe
- D) succederemmo
What is the io form of succedere in the Passato remoto?
- A) succedesti
- B) successe
- C) successi
- D) succedemmo
What is the noi form of succedere in the Present subjunctive?
- A) succeda
- B) succediate
- C) succedano
- D) succediamo
What is the gerund of succedere?
- A) succedendo
- B) successo
- C) succedere
- D) succedo
What is the past participle of succedere?
- A) succedendo
- B) successo
- C) succedere
- D) succedo
What does succedere mean in English?
- A) to sit down
- B) to get dressed
- C) to happen
- D) to call
Answer key
- B) succedi — the correct form is succedi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) sono successo — the correct form is sono successo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) succedeva — the correct form is succedeva. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) succederemo — the correct form is succederemo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) succederesti — the correct form is succederesti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) successi — the correct form is successi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) succediamo — the correct form is succediamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) succedendo — the correct form is succedendo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) successo — the correct form is successo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) to happen — the correct form is to happen. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
Frequently asked questions
What does succedere mean in English?
succedere means “to happen”. You use it whenever you talk about to happen in Italian, in the present, the past and the future.
Is succedere regular or irregular?
succedere is irregular. succedere is irregular in passato-remoto, past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect — learn those forms as a set.
What are the gerund and past participle of succedere?
The gerund is succedendo and the past participle is successo. The perfect tenses use essere + successo.
Where can I see the full conjugation of succedere?
On the succedere conjugation page — every tense, every person, with tables. The succedere passato prossimo 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 succedere, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Related pages
- succedere conjugation — full tables
- succedere in the passato prossimo tense
- 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.
- Sedersi conjugation — another Italian verb in this batch.
- Tenere conjugation — another Italian verb in this batch.
- Italian verbs — the full hub of Italian conjugation pages.
- VerbFlow home — all languages, tools and verb lists.
- Verb Quiz — practise succedere with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Practice — practise succedere with the interactive tool.
- Verb Conjugator — practise succedere with the interactive tool.