Tradurre Conjugation in Italian
tradurre means “to translate” in English, and it is one of the first verbs Italian learners meet — it sits at number 409 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for Italian verbs. It is one of the -rre verbs, and it is totally irregular: the present, the remoto and the participle use different stems, so the io form is traduco, the participle is tradotto and the future is tradurrò. Learn the three stems as a set instead of deriving them from the infinitive. This page gives you the complete conjugation of tradurre — 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 traduco la lettera ogni giorno.” — “I translate the letter.”
Quick facts
- Infinitive: tradurre
- English: to translate
- Verb type: Irregular -ere verb
- Irregular in: present, passato-remoto, imperfect, future, conditional, present-perfect, pluperfect, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, present-subjunctive, imperfect-subjunctive, gerund, past-participle, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative
- Gerund: traducendo
- Present participle: traducente
- Past participle: tradotto
- Auxiliary: avere (all perfect tenses are formed with avere + the past participle)
- Ending: -ere verbs; pattern ere in the verified tables
Pronunciation
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for tradurre, 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 tradurre in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.
Three things to remember about tradurre
- It is irregular in 15 tense(s): present, passato-remoto, imperfect, future, conditional, present-perfect, pluperfect, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, present-subjunctive, imperfect-subjunctive, gerund, past-participle, 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. It is one of the -rre verbs: the present, the remoto and the participle use different stems, so the io form is traduco and the participle is tradotto.
- The perfect tenses use avere: the passato prossimo is formed with avere in the present plus the past participle tradotto. 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 traducente and tradotto: 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 tradurre
A note on the pattern: tradurre is one of the -rre verbs, so its present, remoto and participle use different stems — io traduco, the participle tradotto, the future tradurrò — while the imperfect follows the regular pattern from the stem. Learn the three stems as a set, and do not try to build the remoto or the participle from the infinitive.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for tradurre. 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 | traduco |
| tu | traduci |
| lui/lei | traduce |
| noi | traduciamo |
| voi | traducete |
| loro | traducono |
The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. For example: “Io traduco la lettera ogni giorno.” — “I translate the letter”
Passato remoto
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | tradussi |
| tu | traducesti |
| lui/lei | tradusse |
| noi | traducemmo |
| voi | traduceste |
| loro | tradussero |
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 tradussi la lettera ieri.” — “I translated the letter”
Imperfect (imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | traducevo |
| tu | traducevi |
| lui/lei | traduceva |
| noi | traducevamo |
| voi | traducevate |
| loro | traducevano |
The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and for background description. For example: “Io traducevo la lettera una volta.” — “I used to translate the letter”
Future (futuro semplice)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | tradurrò |
| tu | tradurrai |
| lui/lei | tradurrà |
| noi | tradurremo |
| voi | tradurrete |
| loro | tradurranno |
The future is used for what will happen, for predictions and for probability. For example: “Io tradurrò la lettera domani.” — “I will translate the letter”
Conditional (condizionale)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | tradurrei |
| tu | tradurresti |
| lui/lei | tradurrebbe |
| noi | tradurremmo |
| voi | tradurreste |
| loro | tradurrebbero |
The conditional is used for what would happen, for polite requests and for hypothetical situations. For example: “Io tradurrei la lettera un giorno.” — “I would translate the letter”
Present perfect (passato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | ho tradotto |
| tu | hai tradotto |
| lui/lei | ha tradotto |
| noi | abbiamo tradotto |
| voi | avete tradotto |
| loro | hanno tradotto |
The passato prossimo is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken Italian. For example: “Lui ha tradotto la lettera questa settimana.” — “He has translated the letter”
Pluperfect (trapassato prossimo)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avevo tradotto |
| tu | avevi tradotto |
| lui/lei | aveva tradotto |
| noi | avevamo tradotto |
| voi | avevate tradotto |
| loro | avevano tradotto |
The pluperfect is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Io avevo tradotto la lettera prima della festa.” — “I had translated the letter”
Future perfect (futuro anteriore)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avrò tradotto |
| tu | avrai tradotto |
| lui/lei | avrà tradotto |
| noi | avremo tradotto |
| voi | avrete tradotto |
| loro | avranno tradotto |
The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Io avrò tradotto la lettera per domani.” — “I will have translated the letter”
Conditional perfect (condizionale passato)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | avrei tradotto |
| tu | avresti tradotto |
| lui/lei | avrebbe tradotto |
| noi | avremmo tradotto |
| voi | avreste tradotto |
| loro | avrebbero tradotto |
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Io avrei tradotto la lettera ieri.” — “I would have translated the letter”
Present subjunctive (congiuntivo presente)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | traduca |
| tu | traduca |
| lui/lei | traduca |
| noi | traduciamo |
| voi | traduciate |
| loro | traducano |
The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after che. For example: “È importante che io traduca la lettera.” — “It is important that I translate the letter”
Imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | traducessi |
| tu | traducessi |
| lui/lei | traducesse |
| noi | traducessimo |
| voi | traduceste |
| loro | traducessero |
The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past for wishes and hypotheticals after che, and in if-clauses. For example: “Era importante che io traducessi la lettera.” — “It was important that I translate the letter”
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | traduci |
| lui/lei | traduca |
| noi | traduciamo |
| voi | traducete |
| loro | traducano |
The affirmative imperative is used for direct commands and instructions. For example: “Traduci la lettera!” — “Translate the letter!”
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | tradurre |
| lui/lei | traduca |
| noi | traduciamo |
| voi | traduciate |
| loro | traducano |
The negative imperative is used for prohibitions and negative commands. For example: “Non tradurre la lettera.” — “Do not translate the letter.”
Gerund
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Gerund | traducendo |
The gerund is used for an action happening at the same time as another action, often with stare for the progressive. For example: “Traducendo la lettera, imparo molto.” — “While translating the letter, I learn a lot.”
Present participle
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Present participle | traducente |
The present participle is used as an adjective, describing an ongoing action. For example, the participle traducente 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 | tradotto |
The past participle is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “Io ho tradotto la lettera questa settimana.” — “I have translated the letter.”
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with tradurre, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the Italian and try to produce it from the English.
- “Io traduco la lettera ogni giorno.” — “I translate the letter”
- “Tu traducesti la lettera ieri.” — “You translated the letter”
- “Lui traduceva la lettera una volta.” — “He used to translate the letter”
- “Io tradurrò la lettera domani.” — “I will translate the letter”
- “Tu tradurresti la lettera un giorno.” — “You would translate the letter”
- “Lui ha tradotto la lettera questa settimana.” — “He has translated the letter”
- “Io avevo tradotto la lettera prima della festa.” — “I had translated the letter”
- “Tu avrai tradotto la lettera per domani.” — “You will have translated the letter”
- “È importante che io traduca la lettera.” — “It is important that I translate the letter”
- “Traduci la lettera!” — “Translate the letter!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Io tradurre la lettera.”
✓ Right: “Io traduco la lettera ogni giorno.”
The infinitive tradurre never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form traduco.
2. Using the wrong person’s form
✗ Wrong: “Io traduci la lettera.”
✓ Right: “Io traduco la lettera ogni giorno.”
traduci is the tu form, not the io form. Match the verb to the subject every time: io goes with traduco.
3. Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Io traduco la lettera ieri.”
✓ Right: “Io ho tradotto la lettera questa settimana.”
Yesterday points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the passato prossimo ho tradotto for a finished action yesterday.
4. Using the wrong auxiliary in the passato prossimo
✗ Wrong: “Io sono tradotto la lettera.”
✓ Right: “Io ho tradotto la lettera questa settimana.”
The passato prossimo of tradurre is formed with avere plus the past participle tradotto: the io form is ho tradotto. 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 traduco la lettera.”
✓ Right: “È importante che io traduca la lettera.”
After è importante che Italian needs the subjunctive, so use traduca here, not the indicative traduco.
6. Using the gerund instead of the past participle in a perfect tense
✗ Wrong: “Io ho traducendo la lettera.”
✓ Right: “Io ho tradotto la lettera questa settimana.”
The perfect tenses need the past participle tradotto, not the gerund traducendo. The gerund belongs in progressive constructions, never after an auxiliary in a perfect tense.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on tradurre. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the io form of tradurre in the Present indicative?
- A) traduci
- B) traduco
- C) traduce
- D) traduciamo
What is the lui/lei form of tradurre in the Passato remoto?
- A) tradussi
- B) traducesti
- C) tradusse
- D) traducemmo
What is the noi form of tradurre in the Imperfect?
- A) traducevo
- B) traducevi
- C) traduceva
- D) traducevamo
What is the tu form of tradurre in the Future?
- A) tradurrai
- B) tradurrò
- C) tradurrà
- D) tradurremo
What is the io form of tradurre in the Conditional?
- A) tradurresti
- B) tradurrei
- C) tradurrebbe
- D) tradurremmo
What is the lui/lei form of tradurre in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?
- A) ho tradotto
- B) hai tradotto
- C) ha tradotto
- D) abbiamo tradotto
What is the lui/lei form of tradurre in the Present subjunctive?
- A) traduciamo
- B) traduciate
- C) traducano
- D) traduca
What is the io form of tradurre in the Imperfect subjunctive?
- A) traducessi
- B) traducesse
- C) traducessimo
- D) traduceste
What is the gerund of tradurre?
- A) tradotto
- B) traducendo
- C) tradurre
- D) traduco
What does tradurre mean in English?
- A) to explain
- B) to answer
- C) to translate
- D) to ask
Answer key
- B) traduco — the correct form is traduco. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) tradusse — the correct form is tradusse. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) traducevamo — the correct form is traducevamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) tradurrai — the correct form is tradurrai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) tradurrei — the correct form is tradurrei. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) ha tradotto — the correct form is ha tradotto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) traduca — the correct form is traduca. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) traducessi — the correct form is traducessi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) traducendo — the correct form is traducendo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) to translate — the correct form is to translate. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
Frequently asked questions
What does tradurre mean in English?
tradurre means “to translate”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is tradurre regular or irregular?
tradurre is irregular: it is irregular in present, passato-remoto, imperfect, future, conditional, present-perfect, pluperfect, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, present-subjunctive, imperfect-subjunctive, gerund, past-participle, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative. The gerund is traducendo and the past participle is tradotto.
What are the gerund and past participle of tradurre?
The gerund is traducendo — use it with stare for the progressive. The past participle is tradotto — use it with avere for the perfect tenses, as in ho tradotto.
Which auxiliary does tradurre take in the passato prossimo?
tradurre takes avere in the passato prossimo: the io form is ho tradotto. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with avere plus the past participle tradotto.
How do I say “I translate” in Italian?
Say “Io traduco la lettera ogni giorno.” — “I translate the letter” The io form of the present is traduco, and it is the form you will use most often.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of tradurre — every tense of tradurre in one place.
- Tradurre in the passato prossimo tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Tradurre 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.
- Rispondere conjugation — another everyday Italian verb.
- Discutere 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 tradurre with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Chart Printer — practise tradurre with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise tradurre with the interactive tool.