🔤 Grammar
The three verb families
Italian verbs fall into three families based on their infinitive ending: -are (parlare), -ere (leggere), -ire (dormire). Each family has its own present-tense endings. Learn one pattern per family and you can conjugate hundreds of verbs.
Conjugation tables
Parlare (-are) — to speak
| Pronoun | Italian |
|---|---|
| io | parlo |
| tu | parli |
| lui / lei | parla |
| noi | parliamo |
| voi | parlate |
| loro | parlano |
Leggere (-ere) — to read
| Pronoun | Italian |
|---|---|
| io | leggo |
| tu | leggi |
| lui / lei | legge |
| noi | leggiamo |
| voi | leggete |
| loro | leggono |
Dormire (-ire) — to sleep
| Pronoun | Italian |
|---|---|
| io | dormo |
| tu | dormi |
| lui / lei | dorme |
| noi | dormiamo |
| voi | dormite |
| loro | dormono |
Examples
- Parlo tre lingue.I speak three languages.
- Leggiamo il giornale ogni mattina.We read the newspaper every morning.
- I bambini dormono già.The children are already sleeping.
Practice
Match each infinitive to its meaning.
Tap a english below, then tap the italian it belongs to — or drag it.
Italian
English
Match each conjugated form of parlare to its pronoun.
Tap a pronoun below, then tap the verb form it belongs to — or drag it.
Verb form
Pronoun