Introduction

Volere means “to want”, and this page covers exactly one thing: volere in the passato prossimo. The passato prossimo is the tense Italian speakers reach for when they talk about one finished action in the past, especially in conversation. On this page you will find the full passato prossimo table for volere, how the tense is formed for this verb, the situations where it is used, how it differs from the imperfect, worked examples, the mistakes learners make most often, an eight-question quiz with explained answers, and answers to the questions students ask about volere in the passato prossimo. It expresses wishes, wants and polite requests, and it is the verb behind invitations and offers. It can take a noun or an infinitive, and its present and future forms are irregular. For example: “Lui ha voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “He has wanted a coffee.” Everything on this page uses the forms of volere exactly as they are conjugated in the passato prossimo, so you can trust every form you see here.

Volere in the Passato prossimo — full table

Person Form
io ho voluto
tu hai voluto
lui/lei ha voluto
noi abbiamo voluto
voi avete voluto
loro hanno voluto
Gerund: volendo · Past participle: voluto
The gerund is volendo, which you use with stare to say what is happening at the same time as the main action: “Volendo un caffè, imparo molto.” — “While wanting a coffee, I learn a lot.” The past participle is voluto, which you use with avere in the perfect tenses: ho voluto is the passato prossimo, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the passato prossimo is only one part of how volere is used.
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for volere, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

How the passato prossimo of volere is formed

The passato prossimo of volere is formed with the auxiliary avere in the present plus the past participle voluto: io ho voluto, tu hai voluto, lui ha voluto, noi abbiamo voluto, voi avete voluto, loro hanno voluto. The participle is given here 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.

Two things about the passato prossimo of volere are worth noticing. First, the auxiliary is the whole decision: once you know that volere takes avere, the rest is the present of avere plus one participle, and the same participle serves all four perfect tenses. Second, the passato prossimo is the tense of finished events with a clear result, so it pairs naturally with time words such as ieri, questa settimana and l'anno scorso — those time words are your best clue when you are choosing a tense.

Because the participle voluto never changes in the tables, the passato prossimo of volere is cheap to learn once the auxiliary is fixed. Learn the six auxiliary forms, add the participle, and the whole tense is yours.

When to use the passato prossimo of volere

The passato prossimo is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use volere in the passato prossimo most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.

1. One finished action

The passato prossimo describes a single action that is finished, especially in spoken Italian. When the action has a clear end, the passato prossimo is the natural choice. Example: “Io ho voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “I have wanted a coffee.”

2. Recent events

Use the passato prossimo for things that happened recently — today, this week, this morning — where the result is still visible in the present. Example: “Lui ha voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “He has wanted a coffee.”

3. A sequence of events

When you tell what happened first, second and third, each step takes the passato prossimo. The tense moves the story forward one finished action at a time. Example: “Noi abbiamo voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “We have wanted a coffee.”

4. An experience in your life

Use the passato prossimo for things you have done in your life, with or without a time expression. It is the tense of experience as much as of yesterday. Example: “Tu hai voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “You have wanted a coffee.”

5. News and results

When you report news or a result, the passato prossimo carries it: something happened, and now the situation is different. The result matters more than the process. Example: “Loro hanno voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “They have wanted a coffee.”

Passato Prossimo vs Imperfect: how to choose

The closest tense to the passato prossimo is the imperfect, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the passato prossimo describes one finished action, while the imperfect describes an ongoing or habitual action in the past, or the background of a scene. The three pairs below use the same verb, so the only thing that changes is the time frame — and with it, the tense. Notice how the passato prossimo sentences use words such as ieri or questa settimana, while the imperfect sentences use una volta or ogni giorno.

  • Passato Prossimo: “Lui ha voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “He has wanted a coffee”
  • Imperfect: “Lui voleva un caffè una volta.” — “He used to want a coffee”
  • The passato prossimo sentence is one finished event; the imperfect sentence is an ongoing or habitual past action. Ieri points to the passato prossimo, una volta points to the imperfect.
  • Passato Prossimo: “Io ho voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “I have wanted a coffee”
  • Imperfect: “Io volevo un caffè una volta.” — “I used to want a coffee”
  • The passato prossimo sentence is one finished event; the imperfect sentence is an ongoing or habitual past action. Ieri points to the passato prossimo, una volta points to the imperfect.
  • Passato Prossimo: “Tu hai voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “You have wanted a coffee”
  • Imperfect: “Tu volevi un caffè una volta.” — “You used to want a coffee”
  • The passato prossimo sentence is one finished event; the imperfect sentence is an ongoing or habitual past action. Ieri points to the passato prossimo, una volta points to the imperfect.

Example sentences: volere in the passato prossimo

Read these eight sentences out loud. They cover all six persons, so by the end you will have seen every form in the table used in a real sentence. Pay attention to the words around the verb — the time expressions and the objects — because those are what make each sentence sound natural.

  1. “Io ho voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “I have wanted a coffee”
  2. “Tu hai voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “You have wanted a coffee”
  3. “Lui ha voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “He has wanted a coffee”
  4. “Noi abbiamo voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “We have wanted a coffee”
  5. “Voi avete voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “You have wanted a coffee”
  6. “Loro hanno voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “They have wanted a coffee”
  7. “Io ho voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “I have wanted a coffee”
  8. “Lui ha voluto un caffè questa settimana.” — “He has wanted a coffee”

Common mistakes

These are the errors learners actually make with this verb in this tense. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.

  • Wrong: “Io sono voluto un caffè.” Right: “Io ho voluto un caffè questa settimana.” Why: volere takes avere in the passato prossimo, not the other auxiliary. The io form is ho voluto — check the auxiliary before you build the tense.
  • Wrong: “Io voglio un caffè ieri.” Right: “Io ho voluto un caffè questa settimana.” Why: Ieri points to the past, so the present is wrong here. Use the passato prossimo ho voluto for a finished action yesterday.
  • Wrong: “Io ho volendo un caffè.” Right: “Io ho voluto un caffè questa settimana.” Why: The passato prossimo needs the past participle voluto, not the gerund volendo. The gerund belongs in progressive constructions, never after an auxiliary.
  • Wrong: “Io volere un caffè.” Right: “Io ho voluto un caffè questa settimana.” Why: The infinitive volere never takes a subject and never forms a past tense on its own. After io you need the conjugated passato prossimo form ho voluto.

Quiz: test yourself

Choose the correct answer for each question, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained, so a wrong answer still teaches you something.

  1. What is the io form of volere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

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

  2. What is the tu form of volere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

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

  3. What is the lui/lei form of volere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

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

  4. What is the noi form of volere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

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

  5. What is the voi form of volere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) ho voluto
    • B) avete voluto
    • C) hai voluto
    • D) ha voluto

  6. What is the loro form of volere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) ho voluto
    • B) hai voluto
    • C) hanno voluto
    • D) ha voluto

  7. What is the io form of volere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

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

  8. What is the tu form of volere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

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

Answer key

  1. B) ho voluto — the correct form is ho voluto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) hai voluto — the correct form is hai voluto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) ha voluto — the correct form is ha voluto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) abbiamo voluto — the correct form is abbiamo voluto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) avete voluto — the correct form is avete voluto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) hanno voluto — the correct form is hanno voluto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) ho voluto — the correct form is ho voluto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) hai voluto — the correct form is hai voluto. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does volere mean in English?

volere means “to want”. It is a non-reflexive, irregular -ere verb.

How is the passato prossimo of volere formed?

With the auxiliary avere in the present plus the past participle voluto: io ho voluto, tu hai voluto, lui ha voluto, noi abbiamo voluto, voi avete voluto, loro hanno voluto.

When do I use the passato prossimo instead of the imperfect?

Use the passato prossimo for one finished action in the past. Use the imperfect for an ongoing or habitual past action, or for background description. The time words are your best clue: ieri points to the passato prossimo, una volta points to the imperfect.

What are the gerund and past participle of volere?

The gerund is volendo and the past participle is voluto. The perfect tenses use avere + voluto.

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