The conditional tense expresses "would" and is used with requests and doubts.  It is also used in hypothetical situations with "if" clauses or with events or actions that may occur in the future, but probably won't.

To form the present conditional, use the future stem and these endings for the three types of verbs.  (The verbs that have irregular future stems are also irregular in the conditional tense.)

Gli parlerei, ma non è a casa.  I would talk to him, but he's not at home.
Prendereste un caffè?  Would you like some coffee?
Sarei più contenta.  I would be happier.

As in the future tense, verbs ending in -care and -gare add an h after the c or g for pronunciation.  Verbs endings in -ciare and -giare drop the final i in all forms of the present conditional.

Dovere, potere, and volere all have irregular forms in the present conditional:

The past conditional expresses the same basic idea as the present conditional.  It is used to express unfulfilled requests, situations that did not occur, or events which had the possibility to fulfill themselves, but didn't.  It is formed by using the present conditional of avere or essere and the past participle of the main verb.  One difference between English and Italian usage of the past conditional is that when expressing a future action from the viewpoint of the past, Italian uses the past conditional whereas English uses the present conditional.

Ha detto che sarebbe venuto.  He said that he would come.

82. Parts of a Car / Gas Station

83. To Drive & to Translate

84. Travelling / Airport

86. Use of the Infinitive

The infinitive can be used after certain prepositions, such as per, prima di and senza; whereas in English, the gerund form is usually used.

Siamo pronti per uscire.  We are ready to go out.
Prima di partire.  Before leaving.
Senza dire niente.  Without saying anything.

The past infinitive may be used after senza and dopo.  It is formed with the auxiliaries essere or avere and the past participle of the verb.  The final -e of the auxiliary verb is commonly dropped.

Sono venuti senza aver telefonato.  They came without having telephoned.
È ritornata dopo aver comprato i biglietti.  She returned after having bought the tickets.

The infinitive may also function as a noun.  In this case, the English translation is also the gerund form.

Viaggiare stanca.  Travelling is tiring.

Letting, seeing or hearing someone do something is expressed by the forms of lasciare, vedere and sentire plus the infinitive.

Ho sentito cantare Teresa.  I heard Teresa singing.
Ho veduto dormire i bambini.  I saw the children sleeping.

87. Subjunctive Mood: Present & Present Perfect

The Subjunctive mood expresses doubt, uncertainty, hope, fear, possibility, opinions, etc. and is used much more frequently in Italian.  It is mainly used in dependent clauses (sentences introduced by a conjunction that do not have a complete meaning) that are introduced by che.

The present subjunctive of regular verbs is formed by dropping the normal endings, and adding these new endings:

Verbs ending in -care and -gare add an h before all endings of the present subjunctive.  Verbs ending in -ciare and -giare drop the i from their stems.

Many common verbs have irregular present subjunctive forms:

→ The present perfect subjunctive is formed with the present subjunctive of avere or essere and the past participle of the main verb.

Credo che abbiano fatto sciopero. I think they went on strike.

88. Uses of the Subjunctive Mood

The subjunctive is used after verbs expressing hope, wish, desire, command or doubt such as sperare - to hope, desiderare - to desire, volere - to want, and dubitare - to doubt.  But verbs that express certainty or fact used in the affirmative sense (and not negative) require the indicative, such as essere sicuro - to be sure, essere certo - to be certain, and sapere - to know.  And if the subject of both verbs in the sentence is the same, use di with the infinitive instead of the subjunctive.

Dubito che loro vengano.  I doubt that they're coming.
Spero che lei vinca.  I hope that she wins.
Non so se i musei siano aperti.  I don't know if the museums are open.
So che i musei sono aperti.  I know that the museums are open.
Non credo di averlo perso.  I don't think that I lost it. (same subject)

→ The subjunctive is also used after impersonal expressions, usually essere and an adjective or adverb, unless they state a fact.  Some common expressions are è necessario - it's necessary, è meglio - it's better, è possibile - it's possible, and è probabile - it's probable.  The indicative is used after these expressions of certainty: è certo - it's certain, è sicuro - it's sure, and è vero - it's true.

→ Certain conjunctions require the subjunctive as well, such as a meno che... non - unless, sebbene - even though, benché / per quanto - although, affinché / perché - so that, prima che - before, senza che - without, a condizione che / purché - provided that, and nel caso che - in the event that.  The subjunctive is also used after il primo.. che, l'ultimo..che, and il solo...che as well as in dependent clauses beginning with an indefinite: chiunque - whoever, comunque - however, dovunque - wherever, qualunque - whatever.

The imperfect subjunctive is formed by adding the same set of endings to all infinitives, minus -re. The stem vowel of the infinitive must be kept (either a, e or i).

Some common verbs have irregular imperfect subjunctive forms:

→ The imperfect subjunctive is often used after come se (as if).

Parla come se sapesse tutto. He talks as if he knows everything.

→ When the verb of the main clause is in a past tense or the conditional, then the verb in the dependent clause will be in the imperfect subjunctive if that action took place at the same time or later than the action in the independent clause.

Non c'era nessuno che mi capisse. There was no one who understood me.

→ The past perfect subjunctive is formed with the imperfect subjunctive of avere or essere plus the past participle of the main verb.

Speravo che avessero capito. I was hoping that they had understood.

→ When the verb of the main clause is in a past tense or the conditional, then the verb in the dependent clause will be in the past perfect subjunctive if that action took place before the action in the independent clause.

Era il più bello film che io avessi mai visto. It was the most beautiful film I had ever seen.

→ The imperfect subjunctive is used in hypothetical clauses beginning with se (if), when the verb of the main clause is in the conditional tense. In English, the simple past tense is used instead; however, in both languages either the se clause or the main clause can begin the sentence.

Andrei al cinema se avessi tempo. I would go to the movies if I had money.
Se avessi tempo, andrei al cinema. If I had money, I would go to the movies.

91. Possessive Pronouns

The possessive pronouns replace a noun, and they have the same forms as the possessive adjectives.  They always require an article, unless the possessive pronoun follows the verb essere, in which case it is omitted.

Non parlo a tua madre. Parlo alla mia.  I'm not talking to your mother.  I'm talking to mine.
Questa macchina è mia.  This car is mine.

92. Historical Past (Passato Remoto)

The historical past or past absolute is used to indicate a completed action, and is used mainly in writing and rarely in speech (except in certain parts of Italy).  It is not a compound tense, and is formed by dropping the regular stems of the verbs and adding these endings:

Avere and essere and many other verbs are irregular in the historical past:

The following verbs are irregular only in the io, lui/lei and loro forms.  The verbs are all either -ere or -ire verbs, so use the irregular stem for these three forms and add these endings: -i, -e, -ero.  Use the regular stem and regular endings for the other three forms.

The present perfect of the historical past is formed the same way as the present perfect of the indicative.  Just add the past participle to the historical past of avere or essere.

93. Art & Literature

94. Holidays

95. Hobbies & Tools

96. Adverbs of Time & Manner

97. Grammatical Terms

Regions of Italy