Trovare Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

trovare — to find — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Italian. It is a non-reflexive, regular -are verb, and it comes up in conversation, at work and at home. It means to find something lost and to find something out, and it is completely regular. It also appears in the expression for finding oneself somewhere, and in the passive-like use where something 'is found' somewhere. On this page you will find trovare 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 trovare conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the trovare present tense page.

Example sentences with trovare

In the present tense

  • “Io trovo le chiavi ogni giorno.” — “I find the keys”
  • “Tu trovi le chiavi ogni giorno.” — “You find the keys”
  • “Lui trova le chiavi ogni giorno.” — “He finds the keys”
  • “Noi troviamo le chiavi ogni giorno.” — “We find the keys”
  • “Voi trovate le chiavi ogni giorno.” — “You find the keys”
  • “Loro trovano le chiavi ogni giorno.” — “They find the keys”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io ho trovato le chiavi questa settimana.” — “I have found the keys”
  • “Tu hai trovato le chiavi questa settimana.” — “You have found the keys”
  • “Lui ha trovato le chiavi questa settimana.” — “He has found the keys”
  • “Noi abbiamo trovato le chiavi questa settimana.” — “We have found the keys”
  • “Voi avete trovato le chiavi questa settimana.” — “You have found the keys”
  • “Loro hanno trovato le chiavi questa settimana.” — “They have found the keys”

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.

  • “Io trovavo le chiavi una volta.” — “I used to find the keys”
  • “Tu troverai le chiavi domani.” — “You will find the keys”
  • “Lui troverebbe le chiavi un giorno.” — “He would find the keys”
  • “È importante che noi troviamo le chiavi.” — “It is important that we find the keys”
  • “Trova le chiavi!” — “Find the keys!”

How trovare is used

The first thing to know about trovare is its core meaning: to find. It means to find something lost and to find something out, and it is completely regular. It also appears in the expression for finding oneself somewhere, and in the passive-like use where something 'is found' somewhere. 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 the company trovare keeps. The present io form is trovo, and it pairs naturally with the time words ogni giorno and sempre for habits, and with adesso for what is happening right now. The passato prossimo io form is ho trovato, and it pairs with ieri and questa settimana for finished actions. When you learn a verb form, learn its time words with it, and choosing the tense becomes automatic. The third thing to know is what trovare does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need trovo, never trovare. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is ho trovato, built with avere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle trovato is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Trovare in context

Io trovo le chiavi ogni giorno. Tu trovi le chiavi ogni giorno. Lui trova le chiavi ogni giorno. Noi troviamo le chiavi ogni giorno. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of trovare is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — trovo, trovi, trova, troviamo — while the meaning stays the same: to find. Io ho trovato le chiavi questa settimana. Tu hai trovato le chiavi questa settimana. Lui ha trovato le chiavi questa settimana. Noi abbiamo trovato le chiavi questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of trovare 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 find — 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 trovare le chiavi.”

✓ Right: “Io trovo le chiavi ogni giorno.”

The infinitive trovare never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form trovo.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io trovi le chiavi.”

✓ Right: “Io trovo le chiavi ogni giorno.”

trovi is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is trovo — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io trovo le chiavi ieri.”

✓ Right: “Io ho trovato le chiavi questa settimana.”

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo ho trovato here, not the present trovo.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Io sono trovato le chiavi.”

✓ Right: “Io ho trovato le chiavi questa settimana.”

trovare takes avere in the passato prossimo. The io form is ho trovato — the other auxiliary never belongs with this verb.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on trovare across the tenses. Answers with explanations follow each question.

  1. What is the tu form of trovare in the Present indicative?

    • A) trovo
    • B) trovi
    • C) trova
    • D) troviamo

  2. What is the io form of trovare in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) hai trovato
    • B) ha trovato
    • C) ho trovato
    • D) abbiamo trovato

  3. What is the lui/lei form of trovare in the Imperfect?

    • A) trovavo
    • B) trovavi
    • C) trovavamo
    • D) trovava

  4. What is the noi form of trovare in the Future?

    • A) troveremo
    • B) troverò
    • C) troverai
    • D) troverà

  5. What is the tu form of trovare in the Conditional?

    • A) troverei
    • B) troveresti
    • C) troverebbe
    • D) troveremmo

  6. What is the io form of trovare in the Passato remoto?

    • A) trovasti
    • B) trovò
    • C) trovai
    • D) trovammo

  7. What is the noi form of trovare in the Present subjunctive?

    • A) trovi
    • B) troviate
    • C) trovino
    • D) troviamo

  8. What is the gerund of trovare?

    • A) trovando
    • B) trovato
    • C) trovare
    • D) trovo

  9. What is the past participle of trovare?

    • A) trovando
    • B) trovato
    • C) trovare
    • D) trovo

  10. What does trovare mean in English?

  • A) to be
  • B) to have
  • C) to find
  • D) to do, to make

Answer key

  1. B) trovi — the correct form is trovi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) ho trovato — the correct form is ho trovato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) trovava — the correct form is trovava. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) troveremo — the correct form is troveremo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) troveresti — the correct form is troveresti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) trovai — the correct form is trovai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) troviamo — the correct form is troviamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) trovando — the correct form is trovando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) trovato — the correct form is trovato. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to find — the correct form is to find. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does trovare mean in English?

trovare means “to find”. You use it whenever you talk about to find in Italian, in the present, the past and the future.

Is trovare regular or irregular?

trovare is regular. trovare is regular: every form follows the standard -are endings, so once you know the pattern you can build every tense from the stem.

What are the gerund and past participle of trovare?

The gerund is trovando and the past participle is trovato. The perfect tenses use avere + trovato.

Where can I see the full conjugation of trovare?

On the trovare conjugation page — every tense, every person, with tables. The trovare present 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 trovare, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

Related pages