essere imperfect tense conjugation
Essere (to be) in the imperfect tense: ero, eri, era, eravamo, eravate, erano.
Imperfetto Imperfect
| io | regular: essevo |
|---|---|
| tu | regular: essevi |
| lui/lei | regular: esseva |
| noi | regular: essevamo |
| voi | regular: essevate |
| loro | regular: essevano |
ending regular · irr breaks the pattern · tap a form to hear it
When to use the imperfect tense
The imperfetto describes the past as background: habits (“used to”), ongoing actions and descriptions: “Da bambino giocavo a calcio.”
How it is formed
Regular endings: -are → avo, avi, ava, avamo, avate, avano; -ere → evo…; -ire → ivo…. Essere is irregular (ero, eri, era…); fare, dire and bere use their old stems (facevo, dicevo, bevevo).
Essere is irregular here. 6 of 6 forms break the pattern (dark tiles above); the regular pattern would give essevo, essevi, esseva, essevamo, essevate, essevano.
Essere in a sentence
- Sono italiano.I am Italian.
- Ieri sono stato al mare.Yesterday I was at the beach.
Highly irregular; used as auxiliary for itself and many intransitive/reflexive verbs.
FAQ
What is the imperfect tense of essere?
Essere in the Italian imperfect tense: io ero, tu eri, lui/lei era, noi eravamo, voi eravate, loro erano.
Is essere irregular in the imperfect tense?
Yes. 6 of 6 forms break the regular pattern: io ero (regular would be essevo); tu eri (regular would be essevi); lui/lei era (regular would be esseva); noi eravamo (regular would be essevamo); voi eravate (regular would be essevate); loro erano (regular would be essevano).
When do you use the Italian imperfect tense?
The imperfetto describes the past as background: habits (“used to”), ongoing actions and descriptions: “Da bambino giocavo a calcio.”
How is the imperfect tense formed?
Regular endings: -are → avo, avi, ava, avamo, avate, avano; -ere → evo…; -ire → ivo…. Essere is irregular (ero, eri, era…); fare, dire and bere use their old stems (facevo, dicevo, bevevo).
Full essere conjugation, all tenses →
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