Present Tense of Irregular Verbs

Some verbs do not follow the same rules as regular verbs in regard to their endings. (see Present
Tense of Regular verbs). These verbs are referred to as Irregular verbs mainly because they do
not follow a regular pattern of endings and must be memorised individually.

Study carefully the Irregular verbs below.

AVERE to have Example

io ho* I have Ho tanti amici italiani.

tu hai you have (singular) I have many Italian friends.
lui ha he has
lei ha she has
Lei ha you have (formal)
noi abbiamo we have
voi avete you have (plural)
loro hanno they have
Loro hanno you have (formal)

* the ‘h’ is silent!

ESSERE to be Example

io sono I am Lei è la mia amica australiana.

tu sei you are (singular) She is my australian friend.
lui è he is
lei è she is
Lei è you are (formal)
noi siamo we are
voi siete you are (plural)
loro sono they are
Loro sono you are (formal)

Please note:

These two verbs are called auxiliary verbs or helping verbs, because they help
other verbs to form the past tense.
FARE to do / to make Example

io faccio I do Fa l'anno undici a scuola.

tu fai you do (singular) She does year 11 at school.
lui fa he does
lei fa she does
Lei fa you do(formal)
noi facciamo we do
voi fate you do (plural)
loro fanno they do
Loro fanno you do (formal)

ANDARE to go Example

io vado I go Andiamo a scuola insieme

tu vai you go (singular) We go to school together.
lui va he goes
lei va she goes
Lei va you go(formal)
noi andiamo we go
voi andate you go (plural)
loro vanno they go
Loro vanno you go (formal)

STARE to be /to stay Examples

io sto I am / I stay Come stai? Bene, grazie.

tu stai you are (singular) How are you?Well, thank you..
lui sta he is
lei sta she is Sto a Roma per tre giorni.
Lei sta you are (formal) I am staying in Rome for three days.
noi stiamo we are
voi state you are (plural)
loro stanno they are
Loro stanno you are (formal)

Please note:

This verb is used to enquire about other people, particularly about their general wellbeing or
health. But it also has the English meaning of to stay.
VOLERE to want Example

io voglio I want Vuoi prendere un gelato?

tu vuoi you want (singular) Do you want to get an icecream?
lui vuole he wants
lei vuole she wants
Lei vuole you want (formal)
noi vogliamo we want
voi volete you want (plural)
loro vogliono they want
Loro vogliono you want (formal)

POTERE can /able to Example

io posso I can Non possiamo andare al cinema oggi.

tu puoi you can (singular) We cannot go to the movies today.
lui può he can
lei può she can
Lei può you can (formal)
noi possiamo we can
voi potete you can (plural)
loro possono they can
Loro possono you can (formal)

DOVERE must/have to Example

io devo I must Devi andare a letto presto stasera.

tu devi you must (singular) You must go to bed early tonight.
lui deve he must
lei deve she must .
Lei deve you must (formal)
noi dobbiamo we must
voi dovete you must (plural)
loro devono they must
Loro devono you must (formal)

Please note:
These three verbs are referred to as MODAL verbs. In the sentence, they are often followed
by the infinitive form of other verbs.
Examples
Devi andare a letto presto stasera.
Non possiamo andare al cinema oggi.
Vuoi prendere un gelato?