Italian Language Lessons
Grammar, spelling, and usage
Italian Present Conditional Tense
Workbook Exercises About This Topic
Printer–Friendly Version
The present conditional tense (condizionale presente) is equivalent to the English constructions of "would" + verb (for example: I would never forget). Forming conditionals is easy: just take any verb, drop the final -e in its infinitive form, and add an appropriate ending—endings are the same for all three conjugation groups of verbs. The only spelling change occurs with -are verbs, which change the a of the infinitive ending to e. For details, see the table below.
| CONJUGATING VERBS IN THE PRESENT CONDITIONAL |
|---|
| PRONOUN | PARLARE | CREDERE | SENTIRE |
|---|
| io | parlerei | crederei | sentirei |
| tu | parleresti | crederesti | sentiresti |
| lui/lei/Lei | parlerebbe | crederebbe | sentirebbe |
| noi | parleremmo | crederemmo | sentiremmo |
| voi | parlereste | credereste | sentireste |
| loro/Loro | parlerebbero | crederebbero | sentirebbero |
Reflexive verbs follow the same scheme, with the addition of the reflexive pronouns mi, ti, si, ci, vi, or si when conjugating them: mi laverei, ti laveresti, si laverebbe, ci laveremmo, vi lavereste, si laverebbero. Here are some examples of conditional-tense sentences:
Vorrei un caffè. (I would like a coffee.)
Scriverei a mia madre, ma non ho tempo. (I would write to my mother, but I don't have time.)
Mi daresti il biglietto per la partita? (Would you give me a ticket for the game?)
| Italian Language Study Resources |
| Language Lessons: Italian grammar, spelling, and usage. |
| Audio Phrasebook: Improve your pronunciation and build your vocabulary. |
| Workbook Exercises: Worksheets, drills, activities, and review. |
| Buon Divertimento: Italian jokes, riddles, and puns. |
| Italian Verbs: Formation, moods, tenses, and table of conjugations. |
| Study Guides: Challenge your skills and test your knowledge of various topics. |
| Audio Lab: Word of the day, survival phrases, ABC's, numbers, and conversation. |
Newsletter
