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Italian grammar Part of Chapter 1

CEFR A1-A2

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Essere and Avere: Italian Conjugation and Which to Use

By Michael McGettrickUpdated 11 October 2026

Essere (to be) and avere (to have) hold up most of Italian. Both are irregular, both are unavoidable, and every compound tense is built from one or the other. Learn the two present tenses first; everything else on this page hangs off them.

Quick check

Three quick questions on what you have just read. The full practice is further down.

Pick the right one

0/3

Which auxiliary does the verb take in the compound past?

  1. andare (to go)

  2. fare (to do, to make)

  3. uscire (to go out)

Learn these two tables and stop negotiating

essereaveresilent hWhat do the colours mean?
Personessere: to beavere: to have
/

There is no pattern to derive: these two have been worn smooth by constant use. The regular verbs can be conjugated on sight; these must be memorised.

Both in a sentence

ItalianEnglish
.I'm at home.
?Are you here?
.She is Italian.
.We have time.
?Have you got a house?
.They have everything.
A woman with long hair and a bow stands on the grass holding an open green umbrella over her head and a dog on a red lead; a red car is parked behind her.

Lei ha un cane, una macchina e un ombrello: she has a dog, a car and an umbrella. The h of ha is never said.

Sono twice

is both I am and they are. Context sorts it out, and so does a pronoun when needed:

  • . - I'm here.
  • . - They' here.

The silent h

Every h in is silent. It is there only to tell words apart on the page:

With hSaysWithout hMeans
oor
ato, at
year

So . (I have an hour) is said exactly like o . The Italian alphabet has the rest of the silent-h story.

Where Italian says have and English says be

does jobs English gives to be. Learn these as fixed phrases, because the literal English will not get you there:

ItalianLiterallyEnglish
.I have hungerI'm hungry
.I have thirstI'm thirsty
.I have coldI'm cold
.I have heatI'm hot
sonno.I have sleepI'm sleepy
.I have fearI'm afraid
.I have reasonI'm right
.I have twenty yearsI'm twenty
  • I’m hungry I’m hungry
  • I’m thirsty I’m thirsty
  • I’m cold I’m cold
  • I’m hot I’m hot
  • I’m afraid I’m afraid

They work in every person: (you' right), (we' hungry). Age is the one learners get wrong longest. To ask it, say ?, how old are you? Never use for it: is wrong.

has a fixed phrase in return, and , there is and there are: is there's time. C'è and ci sono covers it.

Essere or avere in the past

The everyday past tense, the , is one of the two verbs plus a participle. Which one is not free:

ItalianEnglishAuxiliary
.I went.
.She went out.
.I saw the house.
.I did everything.
  • goes with verbs of motion and change of state: going, coming, arriving, leaving, being born, becoming. - I arrived.
  • goes with most of the rest, especially verbs with a direct object. - I did the work.

Not every movement verb qualifies: (I walked a lot) takes , because walking names the activity, not a change of place. The boundary leaks, so learn the auxiliary with the verb.

The giveaway: the ending moves

With , the participle agrees with the subject like an adjective. With , it normally stays put.

the ending that agreesmasculinefeminineWhat do the colours mean?
Lui è andato, he went; lei è andata, she went
PersonWith essereWith avere
(m)
(f)

A mixed group takes the masculine plural: Marco Anna , Marco and Anna went.

Essere verbs worth knowing by name

Most verbs take , so learn the shorter list and default to :

VerbMeaningPast
to go - I went
to come - I came
to go out - I went out
to arrive - I arrived
to leave - I left
to stay, be - I stayed
to be born - I was born
to become - I became

is also its own auxiliary: I have been is , never . Every reflexive verb takes it too: , I got up. The full rule, with the verbs that take either, is in the passato prossimo.

Mistakes English speakers make

WrongRightWhy
age takes
hunger is something you have
ho takes
ho is its own auxiliary
è participles agree
saying the h in hoothe h is silent

What to do next

  1. Say both tables aloud until and come without thinking.
  2. Learn the eight phrases with , then try them with and .
  3. When you reach the past, learn each new verb with its auxiliary.

Practise: test yourself

Matching

0/4

Match the person to the form of essere.

Sort into groups

0/6

Essere or avere? Sort each phrase by the verb Italian uses.

Tap a word, then the group it belongs in.

Complete the story

0/6

Choose essere or avere for each gap.

Marco on Monday

Marco italiano e trent'anni. Oggi a casa, perché sonno e fame. Sua sorella uscita.

Gap 1 of 6

Pick the right one

0/5

Which auxiliary does the verb take in the compound past?

  1. andare (to go)

  2. fare (to do, to make)

  3. uscire (to go out)

  4. vedere (to see)

  5. venire (to come)

Spot the mistake

0/4

Tap the mistake.

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Practice worksheets and infographics

Practice worksheets with answer keys built in, plus infographic and listicle formats. Open any one to view, print or save.

Infographics

  1. Key points infographic
  2. Learn these two tables and stop negotiating
  3. Both in a sentence
  4. The silent h
  5. Where Italian says have and English says be
  6. Essere or avere in the past
  7. The giveaway: the ending moves
  8. Essere verbs worth knowing by name
  9. Mistakes English speakers make

Other formats

  1. Listicle

More grammar on this course

Frequently asked questions

How do you conjugate in Italian?
, , , , , . The first person singular and the third person plural are identical, so context does the work: is I am here and is they are here. This verb is irregular in every person and has to be memorised.
How do you conjugate in Italian?
, , , , , . The h is never pronounced: it is there on the page to keep apart from o (or), from a (to) and from (year). So sounds exactly like o.
Why do Italians say instead of ?
Because hunger, thirst, cold, fear and age are things Italian has rather than is. is I am hungry, is I am cold, and is I am twenty. exists, but it is stronger, closer to famished or starving; for everyday hunger, use .
How do you know whether to use or in the past?
Learn the auxiliary with the verb, the way you learn a noun with its article. The pattern that helps: verbs of movement and change of state take ( , I went; , I was born), and most others, especially verbs with a direct object, take ( , I saw the house).
Does the ending change when a verb takes ?
Yes. With the participle agrees with the subject: a man says and a woman says . With it normally stays the same: for everyone. If you hear the ending shift between -o and -a, an verb is in play.