Italian Grammar Bank

ITALIAN AUXILIARY VERBS

The verbs “to be” and “to have” are two of the main verbs in the Italian language, and they are used practically every day.

Unfortunately, they are irregular and take on a wide variety of meanings, but don’t worry!

Thanks to our guide you will discover the conjugation of the present tense of the verbs to be and to have, the meanings of these verbs, and their function as auxiliaries.

PRESENT TENSE

Essere (to be) and avere (to have) are two of the most important verbs in the Italian language.

These verbs are used every day and, unfortunately, they are irregular.

But don’t worry, because hearing them and using them so often will help you memorize them in no time! Below you can see the conjugation of the present indicative of essere and avere.

ESSERE (TO BE)
Indicativo Presente
io sono
tu sei
lui è
noi siamo
voi siete
loro sono
AVERE (TO HAVE)
Indicativo Presente
io ho
tu hai
lui ha
noi abbiamo
voi avete
loro hanno

Remember: in Italian, when a word begins with h, the h is not pronounced. For this reason, “hanno” is pronounced in the same way as “anno” (which means year). Pay attention to the correct spelling: if you mean the verb, you’ll need an h.

MEANINGS & EXAMPLES

When it’s used by itself, the verb avere (to have) can have three meanings:

  1. It can indicate possession:

Maria ha tre cani.

Mary has three dogs.
  1. It can indicate feelings, moods, physical or mental sensations:

Ho fame e sete.

I am hungry and thirsty.

Ho paura.

I am afraid.
  1. It can indicate a person’s age:

Gianluca ha 30 anni.

Gianluca is 30 years old.

When it’s used by itself, the verb essere (to be) can have four meanings:

  1. It can be used to identify someone/something:

La capitale italiana è Roma.

Rome is the capital of Italy.

Io sono un’insegnante.

I’m a teacher.
  1. It can be used to attribute a characteristic to someone/something:

Lucia è alta.

Lucia is tall.

Il gatto è pigro.

The cat is lazy.
  1. It can mean “to be located”:

Dove sei?

Where are you?
  1. When preceded by the particle “ci”, it means “there is/there are”:

Sul tavolo ci sono molti fogli.

There are many sheets on the table.

AUXILIARY FUNCTION

Essere and avere can also be used as auxiliary verbs. This means that, when joined with another verb, these verbs form the compound tenses of the active conjugation and the passive conjugation.

Essere has 3 main uses as an auxiliary verb:

  1. It is used to create the passive form:
ITALIANENGLISH
L’Italiano è studiato da molte persone.Italian is studied by many people.
  1. It is used with reflexive verbs:

A reflexive verb is a verb whose subject is also the object. In other words, the subject both performs and undergoes the action of the verb.

ITALIANENGLISH
Alla fine le cose si sono risolte da sole.Eventually, things worked themselves out.
Oggi non mi sono lavato.I didn’t wash today.
  1. It is used with the majority of intransitive verbs

An intransitive verb is a verb that cannot have a direct object: they can only be followed by a complement introduced by a preposition.

ITALIANENGLISH
Ieri sono andato al mare.Yesterday I went to the beach.
Laura è inciampata.Laura tripped.

For example, many verbs expressing movement (such as andare, venire, tornare, partire, entrare, uscire) are intransitive and form their compound forms with the auxiliary “essere”.

Below you can see the most simple compound tense, passato prossimo, which can be used to talk about events that took place in the past.

Indicativo PASSATO PROSSIMO (with the ITALIAN auxiliary verb TO BE)
io sono andato
tu sei andato
lui è andato
noi siamo andati
voi siete andati
loro sono andati

The auxiliary avere is used only in two specific cases:

  1. To form the compound tenses of all transitive verbs. For example:
italianenglish
La mamma ha fatto la pizza.Mum made pizza.
  1. To form the compound tenses of some intransitive verbs. For example:
italianenglish
Questa notte ho dormito male.I didn’t sleep well last night.

Below you can see the passato prossimo of the verb mangiare (to eat), which uses avere as its auxiliary.

Indicativo PASSATO PROSSIMO (with the ITALIAN auxiliary verb TO HAVE)
io ho mangiato
tu hai mangiato
lui ha mangiato
noi abbiamo mangiato
voi avete mangiato
loro hanno mangiato

Essere and avere are two of the most complicated verbs in the Italian language, but they’re easy to master, as they can be heard or read practically anywhere (songs, films, everyday conversations…) you just need to pick your favorite way to practice!

Learn Italian with FlexiClasses

Book online classes with the best teachers in the industry.

REGISTER

FAQs

What is a transitive verb in Italian?

A transitive verb is a verb that requires a direct object to receive the action of the verb. In other words, a transitive verb is a verb that takes an object.

For example, in the sentence “I ate an apple,” the verb “ate” is transitive because it requires an object (“an apple”) to make sense.

Transitive verbs can take one or more objects, and the direct object usually comes immediately after the verb in a sentence.

In Italian, transitive verbs usually form their compound tenses with the verb “avere”.

Do “essere” and “avere” belong to the 2nd conjugation?

No, they don’t. They are irregular verbs that follow no conjugation. They have their own conjugation (in Italian, we call it “coniugazione propria”).

Is indicativo presente enough to speak Italian?

There are other verbal tenses you’ll need to know, but as a starting point, and since indicativo presente can be used to convey many different meanings, that’s a good starting point to make people understand you.

How do I use “essere” and “avere” as auxiliary verbs?

Essere and Avere can be used as auxiliary verbs to form compound tenses in Italian. Essere is used with a majority of intransitive verbs, or in the passive form, while Avere is used with all transitive verbs and some intransitive verbs.

What are the main meanings of the verb “avere”?

“Avere” can be used to express:

– possession;

– feelings or sensations;

– someone’s age.

Can I learn Italian with LTL?

Absolutely!

We offer individual and group classes on our online platform, Flexi Classes.

Check out our 7 Day Free Trial and get started today!

MORE FREE LESSONS