Italian Language Lessons
Grammar, spelling, and usage
Choosing The Auxiliary Verb
Workbook Exercises About This Topic
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When forming the passato prossimo, which auxiliary verb should be used—avere or essere? How do you decide? Compound tenses such as the passato prossimo are formed with the present indicative of the auxiliary verb avere or essere and the past participle (participio passato).
Transitive Verbs Take Avere
Transitive verbs are those that take a direct object. For instance:
Io ho mangiato una pera. (I ate a pear.)
Loro hanno già studiato la lezione. (They already studied the lesson.)
Non ho mai visto Genova. (I've never visited Genoa.)
The compound tense of a transitive verb is formed with the present indicative of the auxiliary verb avere and the past participle (participio passato). The past participle is invariable and ends in -ato, -uto, or -ito. In phrases with a transitive verb, the direct object of the verb may be expressed explicitly or implied. For example: Io ho mangiato tardi. (I ate late.)
Intransitive Verbs Take Essere
Simply put, intransitive verbs are those that do not take a direct object. These verbs usually express movement or a state of being. The auxiliary verb essere plus the past participle is used to form the passato prossimo and other compounds of almost all intransitive verbs (and the past participle must agree in number and gender with the subject.) The table below contains conjugations of arrivare, crescere, and partire in the passato prossimo.
| PASSATO PROSSIMO WITH ESSERE |
|---|
| PERSON | ARRIVARE (TO ARRIVE) | CRESCERE (TO GROW) | PARTIRE (TO LEAVE, TO DEPART) |
|---|
| (io) | sono arrivato(-a) | sono cresciuto(-a) | sono partito(-a) |
| (tu) | sei arrivato(-a) | sei cresciuto(-a) | sei partito(-a) |
| (lui, lei, Lei) | è arrivato(-a) | è cresciuto(-a) | è partito(-a) |
| (noi) | siamo arrivati(-e) | siamo cresciuti(-e) | siamo partiti(-e) |
| (voi) | siete arrivati(-e) | siete cresciuti(-e) | siete partiti(-e) |
| (loro, Loro) | sono arrivati(-e) | sono cresciuti(-e) | sono partiti(-e) |
Notice that each of the past participles conjugated with essere has four possible endings, depending on the gender of its subject. Take a look at these examples:
La zia è andata a casa. (The aunt went home.)
Le zie sono andate a casa. (The aunts went home.)
Lo zio è andato a casa. (The uncle went home.)
Gli zii sono andati a casa. (The uncles went home.)
When the gender of the subject consists of both males and females, or is unstated, use the masculine form (think of it as a "generic" or "standard" form):
Lo zio e la zia sono andati a casa. (The uncle and aunt went home.)
Noi siami andati a casa. (We went home.)
The following table contains a list of other most commonly used intransitive verbs and their past-participle forms.
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