Italian Language Lessons
Grammar, spelling, and usage
Italian Imperfect Subjunctive Tense
Workbook Exercises About This Topic
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The imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto) is required when the verb in the dependent clause is in a past tense or the conditional. For conjugations of three regular verbs, see the table below.
| CONJUGATING VERBS IN THE IMPERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE |
|---|
| PRONOUN | CANTARE | SAPERE | FINIRE |
|---|
| che io | cantassi | sapessi | finissi |
| che tu | cantassi | sapessi | finissi |
| che lui/lei/Lei | cantasse | sapesse | finisse |
| che noi | cantassimo | sapessimo | finissimo |
| che voi | cantaste | sapeste | finiste |
| che loro/Loro | cantassero | sapessero | finissero |
Here are a few examples of the congiuntivo imperfetto:
Credevo che avessero ragione. (I thought they were right.)
Non era probabile che prendessimo una decisione. (It wasn't likely we would make a decision.)
Non c'era nessuno che ci capisse. (There was no one who understood us.)
Il razzismo era il peggior problema che ci fosse. (Racism was the worst problem there was.)
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