Valere Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

valere — to be worth — 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 is the verb for being worth something, and it is mostly used in the third person, as in asking what something is worth. Its present is irregular with a velar stem, so the io form is valgo, its future stem is varr-, so the future is varrò, and its participle is valso. It takes essere in the passato prossimo. On this page you will find valere 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 valere conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the valere passato prossimo tense page.

Example sentences with valere

In the present tense

  • “Io valgo molto ogni giorno.” — “I am worth a lot”
  • “Tu vali molto ogni giorno.” — “You are worth a lot”
  • “Lui vale molto ogni giorno.” — “He is worth a lot”
  • “Noi valiamo molto ogni giorno.” — “We are worth a lot”
  • “Voi valete molto ogni giorno.” — “You are worth a lot”
  • “Loro valgono molto ogni giorno.” — “They are worth a lot”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io sono valso molto questa settimana.” — “I have been worth a lot”
  • “Tu sei valso molto questa settimana.” — “You have been worth a lot”
  • “Lui è valso molto questa settimana.” — “He has been worth a lot”
  • “Noi siamo valso molto questa settimana.” — “We have been worth a lot”
  • “Voi siete valso molto questa settimana.” — “You have been worth a lot”
  • “Loro sono valso molto questa settimana.” — “They have been worth a lot”

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 valevo molto una volta.” — “I used to be worth a lot”
  • “Tu varrai molto domani.” — “You will be worth a lot”
  • “Lui varrebbe molto un giorno.” — “He would be worth a lot”
  • “È importante che noi valiamo molto.” — “It is important that we be worth a lot”
  • “Vali molto!” — “Be worth a lot!”

How valere is used

The first thing to know about valere is its core meaning: to be worth. It is the verb for being worth something, and it is mostly used in the third person, as in asking what something is worth. Its present is irregular with a velar stem, so the io form is valgo, its future stem is varr-, so the future is varrò, and its participle is valso. It takes essere in the passato prossimo. 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 valere keeps. The present io form is valgo, 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 sono valso, 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 valere does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need valgo, never valere. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is sono valso, built with essere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle valso is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Valere in context

Io valgo molto ogni giorno. Tu vali molto ogni giorno. Lui vale molto ogni giorno. Noi valiamo molto ogni giorno. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of valere is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — valgo, vali, vale, valiamo — while the meaning stays the same: to be worth. Io sono valso molto questa settimana. Tu sei valso molto questa settimana. Lui è valso molto questa settimana. Noi siamo valso molto questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of valere 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 be worth — 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 valere molto.”

✓ Right: “Io valgo molto ogni giorno.”

The infinitive valere never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form valgo.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io vali molto.”

✓ Right: “Io valgo molto ogni giorno.”

vali is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is valgo — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io valgo molto ieri.”

✓ Right: “Io sono valso molto questa settimana.”

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo sono valso here, not the present valgo.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Io ho valso molto.”

✓ Right: “Io sono valso molto questa settimana.”

valere takes essere in the passato prossimo. The io form is sono valso — the other auxiliary never belongs with this verb.

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) valgo
    • B) vali
    • C) vale
    • D) valiamo

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

    • A) sei valso
    • B) è valso
    • C) sono valso
    • D) siamo valso

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

    • A) valevo
    • B) valevi
    • C) valevamo
    • D) valeva

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

    • A) varremo
    • B) varrò
    • C) varrai
    • D) varrà

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

    • A) varrei
    • B) varresti
    • C) varrebbe
    • D) varremmo

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

    • A) valesti
    • B) valse
    • C) valsi
    • D) valemmo

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

    • A) valga
    • B) valiate
    • C) valgano
    • D) valiamo

  8. What is the gerund of valere?

    • A) valendo
    • B) valso
    • C) valere
    • D) valgo

  9. What is the past participle of valere?

    • A) valendo
    • B) valso
    • C) valere
    • D) valgo

  10. What does valere mean in English?

  • A) to explain
  • B) to answer
  • C) to be worth
  • D) to ask

Answer key

  1. B) vali — the correct form is vali. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) sono valso — the correct form is sono valso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) valeva — the correct form is valeva. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) varremo — the correct form is varremo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) varresti — the correct form is varresti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) valsi — the correct form is valsi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) valiamo — the correct form is valiamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) valendo — the correct form is valendo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) valso — the correct form is valso. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to be worth — the correct form is to be worth. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does valere mean in English?

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

Is valere regular or irregular?

valere is irregular. valere is irregular in present, passato-remoto, future, conditional, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, present-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative, past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect — learn those forms as a set.

What are the gerund and past participle of valere?

The gerund is valendo and the past participle is valso. The perfect tenses use essere + valso.

Where can I see the full conjugation of valere?

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

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