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The present tenses - Easy Learning Grammar Italian

What are the present tenses?
The present tenses are the verb forms that are used to talk about what is true at the moment, what generally happens and what is happening now; for example, I’m a student; I travel to college by train; The phone’s ringing.
  • In English there are two tenses you can use to talk about the present:
  • the present simple tense
    I live here.
    They always get up early.
  • the present continuous tense
    He is eating an apple.
    You aren’t listening.
  • In Italian there is also a present simple and a present continuous tense.
  • As in English, the present simple tense in Italian is used to talk about:
  • things that are generally true
D’inverno fa freddo.It’s cold in winter.
  • what people and things usually do
Giulia non mangia la carne.Giulia doesn’t eat meat.
Queste macchine consumano molta benzina.These cars use a lot of petrol.
Andiamo spesso al cinema.We often go to the cinema.
  • Unlike in English, the present simple tense in Italian can be used to talk about:
  • what is happening right now
Piove.It’s raining.
Cosa fai?What are you doing?
  • In Italian the present continuous is also used to talk about things that are happening right now.
Ci sto pensando.I’m thinking about it.
  • For more information on the use of the Present tenses, see The present simple tense and The present continuous tense.
TipYou can use the Italian present simple to translate both the English simple present and the English present continuous.
Piove.It’s raining.
Piove molto.It rains a lot.
  • For more information on How to use the present simple tense, see The present simple tense.
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Table of contents
  • Nouns
    • Using nouns
    • Making nouns plural
  • Articles
    • Two types of article
    • The definite article
    • The indefinite article
  • Adjectives
    • Using adjectives
    • How to make adjectives agree
    • Comparing people or things
    • Demonstrative adjectives
    • Interrogative adjectives
    • Adjectives used in exclamations
    • Possessive adjectives
    • Indefinite adjectives
  • Pronouns
    • Subject pronouns
    • Object pronouns
    • Possessive pronouns
    • ne and ci
    • Indefinite pronouns
    • Relative pronouns
    • Interrogative pronouns
    • Demonstrative pronouns
  • Verbs
    • Overview of verbs
    • The present tenses
    • The present simple tense
    • essere and stare
    • The present continuous tense
    • The imperative
    • Reflexive verbs
    • The future tense
    • The conditional
    • The imperfect tense
    • The perfect tense
    • The past historic
    • The pluperfect or past perfect tense
    • The passive
    • The gerund
    • Impersonal verbs
    • The subjunctive
    • The infinitive
    • Prepositions after verbs
    • Verbal idioms
  • Negatives
  • Questions
    • Different types of questions
    • Question words
  • Adverbs
    • How adverbs are used
    • How to form adverbs
    • Making comparisons using adverbs
    • Some common adverbs
    • Where to put adverbs
  • Prepositions
    • Using prepositions
    • a, di, da, in, su and per
    • Some other common prepositions
  • Conjunctions
    • e, ma, anche, o, perché, che and se
    • Some other common conjunctions
    • Split conjunctions
  • Spelling
  • Stress
  • Numbers
  • Time and date
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