Изучаването на миналo несвършенo време на италиански език често предизвиква колебания дали да използваме форми като ‘ядох’ или ‘ядях’.
It is used for past actions, processes and events that have not ended at the time of speaking and have an unclear ending; for habitually recurring actions.
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I ref. – ARE parlour are |
II ref. – ERE
take era |
III ref. – IRE April ire |
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| I'm talking.avo
you speakavi he, she speaksava we are talkinghere we go I speak.open loro parlavano |
– avo – avi – ava – here we go – open – avano
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I takeevo
you takehome he/she/it takesEve we takelet's go I takeescape they takeevan |
– here
– evi – eva – we left – evate – evano |
I am Aprilivo
you aprhere he,she apryes new aprI will go you aprivet loro aprIvan |
– ivo
– here – yes – ivamo – ivate – Ivano |
Carlo parlava al telefono - Carlo was talking on the phone - the action took place in the past, but at the time of speaking it is not clear whether it has finished
IMPERFECT about NEXT PASSAGE
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IMPERFECT |
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| Habitual repetitive past actions | Di solito andavo a lavoro in machina
Da giovane Luigi non studiava molto Andavano ogni anno in montagna |
I usually went to work by car.
As a young man, Luigi didn't study much. They went to the mountain every year. |
| A specific moment in a past action whose end is unclear | Yesterday I was asleep at 10.
Il 15 aprile Gianna was born in France Due anni fa i Rossi vivevano ancora a Padova |
Yesterday at ten I was asleep.
On April 15, Gianna was already in France. Two years ago, the Rossi family still lived in Padua |
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IMPERFECT + IMPERFECT |
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| Simultaneity of actions | Mentre mangiavo, leggevo il giornale
Quando parlava era semper arrabiato Camminava e parlava al telefono |
While I was eating, I read the newspaper.
When he spoke, he was always angry. He was walking and talking on the phone. |
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NEXT PASSAGE |
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| Past action with a clear ending; the period of the action is precisely fixed from beginning to end | I have been to Italy. per a week
We stayed at Paolo's. everything the day I worked yes 8 all 17 Today Maria slept. fino all 10 |
I was in Italy for a week.
We stayed with Paolo all day. I worked from 8 to 17. Today Maria slept until 10. |
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NEXT PASSAGE + NEXT PASSAGE |
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| Actions that happened one after the other, each subsequent one starting after the end of the previous one | Ho aperto l'armadio e ho preso la camicia blu
I ragazzi hanno mangiato la pizza e poi hanno guardato la tv Laura called Giulia e hanno parlato due ore |
I opened the wardrobe and took out the blue shirt.
The children ate and then watched TV. Laura called Julia and they talked for two hours. |
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NEXT PASSAGE + IMPERFECT |
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| We have two past actions; the first action begins, then the second action begins and ends, and the first continues. | Mentre guardavo la tv é venuta Carla
Quando ero in Italia ho visitato Torino I knew my best friend when I was a couple of years old Mentre ero in autobus é suonato il cellular Quando voi siete venuti, loro dormivano giá Aspettavo giá da due ore quando é arrivata Nina |
While I was watching TV, Carla came
When I was in Italy, I visited Turin. I met my best friend when I was 6 years old. While I was on the bus, my cell phone rang. When you came, they were already sleeping. I had been waiting for two hours when Nina arrived. |
Modal verbs in past tense or imperfect
When we use modal verbs in imperfect, we express uncertainty regarding the result of the action; or the action did not take place or it is not clear whether it took place.
When we use modal verbs c past tense, the result from the action is clear and we don't need to give any further explanations.
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I left early because I had to meet my brother I left early because I had to meet my brother |
I left home early because I had to meet my brother. I left home early because I had to meet my brother. |
We were supposed to meet, but it's not clear if we met.
and we have certainly met |
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After a year of study we could go on vacation After a year of study we could go on vacation
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After a year of studying, we could go on vacation. After a year of studying, we were able to go on vacation.
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We had the opportunity, but it's not clear whether we went.
we are definitely gone |
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Franco didn't want to invite Luigi at his party Franco he didn't want to invite Luigi at his party
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Franco didn't want to invite Luigi to the party with
Franco didn't want to invite Luigi to his party. |
he didn't want to, but it's not clear whether he invited him anyway
he certainly didn't invite him |
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Luigi he couldn't stay until late and it's party immediately Maria had to travel with this storm
Diego he wanted to change la machine e quindi ha comprato una Lancia |
Luigi couldn't stay late and left immediately.
Maria had to travel in this storm
Diego wanted to change his car and so he bought a Lancia. |
here power is in the past tense = could not and did not stay; then we have confirmation that he left
dove remains in abeyance because it is unclear whether she traveled because we specify that he bought the new car, want must be put in the perfect tense |
© 2025 Iliana Dechkova