Present tense conjugations of the verb Essere
Let's start at the very beginning, shall we?
After all, you can't do anything else until you are.
Essere means "to be." It's the most-used verb in the Italian language, and it's used in a number of different contexts, including:
- Describing the names, nationalities, professions and relationships of people
- Stating attributes about objects and ideas
- Saying how you're feeling
- Telling the time
Essere uses the following conjugation in the present tense:
| Pronoun (Eng) | Pronoun (IT) | Conjugation |
|---|---|---|
| I | io | sono |
| you | tu | sei |
| he, she, you (sing. formal) | lui, lei, Lei | è |
| we | noi | siamo |
| you all | voi | siete |
| they | loro | sono |
Like its equivalents in other European languages, essere is an irregular verb.
This means that it conjugation doesn't follow predictable patterns, and you'll just have to memorize its usage. Practice, practice, practice.
Everyday usage of essere in the present tense
Italian is a pro-drop language. This means that the pronoun can be omitted as the subject of the sentence if it is understood through context.
This can sound a little unusual sometimes in English, but we do it too. "Got milk?"
With that in mind, here are some examples of essere in the present tense:
Io sono affamato. (I am hungry.)
Sei molto intelligente. (You are very intelligent. - I dropped the pronoun on that one.)
Lui è il mio amico. (He is my friend.)
È sua figlia. (She is her daughter. - Even though è doesn't tell us if the subject is female or male, the object of the sentence "figlia" tells us the subject is female. )
Noi siamo pronti per partire. (We are ready to leave.)
Voi siete in ritardo. (You are late.)
Loro sono felici. (They are happy.)
Joke of the day
Dove vanno i gatti quando muoiono? PurGATTOrio!