operare — Italian conjugation
to operate
Indicative
Present (Presente) Regular
The presente covers habits, ongoing situations, and plans about to start — much like English “I study” and “I am studying”. One present tense does both in Italian.
Lavora da casa tre giorni a settimana.
| Pronoun | Italian | English |
|---|---|---|
| io | opero | I operate |
| tu | operi | you operate |
| lui/lei | opera | he/she/it operates |
| noi | operiamo | we operate |
| voi | operate | you (pl.) operate |
| loro | operano | they operate |
Simple past (Passato remoto) Regular
The passato remoto tells a completed, narrative past, especially in the south and in literature. The passato prossimo is the normal spoken past in the north, so you choose register and region, not a difference in time alone.
Quella sera arrivò tardi, senza alibi.
| Pronoun | Italian | English |
|---|---|---|
| io | operai | I operated |
| tu | operasti | you operated |
| lui/lei | operò | he/she/it operated |
| noi | operammo | we operated |
| voi | operaste | you (pl.) operated |
| loro | operarono | they operated |
Imperfect (Imperfetto) Regular
The imperfetto is for incomplete past actions, context, and repeated or habitual situations without a clear end. The passato prossimo, not the remoto, is its usual “event” partner in speech.
Da bambina passavo le estati al mare.
| Pronoun | Italian |
|---|---|
| io | operavo |
| tu | operavi |
| lui/lei | operava |
| noi | operavamo |
| voi | operavate |
| loro | operavano |
Conditional (Condizionale) Regular
The condizionale is for polite “would you…”, first-condition hypotheticals, and reported future from a past point of view. The classic if-chain is se + imperfetto → condizionale.
Potresti alzare un poco la voce?
| Pronoun | Italian | English |
|---|---|---|
| io | opererei | I would operate |
| tu | opereresti | you would operate |
| lui/lei | opererebbe | he/she/it would operate |
| noi | opereremmo | we would operate |
| voi | operereste | you (pl.) would operate |
| loro | opererebbero | they would operate |
Future (Futuro semplice) Regular
The futuro semplice is for predictions and far decisions. In speech you often hear the present (with a time adverb) or a paraphrase, and a famous trick is the futuro di probabilità for a present guess: saranno le tre.
Domani partiremo all'alba.
| Pronoun | Italian | English |
|---|---|---|
| io | opererò | I will operate |
| tu | opererai | you will operate |
| lui/lei | opererà | he/she/it will operate |
| noi | opereremo | we will operate |
| voi | opererete | you (pl.) will operate |
| loro | opereranno | they will operate |
Present perfect (Passato prossimo) Regular
The passato prossimo is the workhorse preterit-like past in the north and in everyday Italian: avere/essere + participle, essere for reflexives, motion, and other change-of-state patterns.
Siamo andati a piedi, poi abbiamo preso l'autobus.
| Pronoun | Italian | English |
|---|---|---|
| io | ho operato | I have operated |
| tu | hai operato | you have operated |
| lui/lei | ha operato | he/she/it has operated |
| noi | abbiamo operato | we have operated |
| voi | avete operato | you (pl.) have operated |
| loro | hanno operato | they have operated |
Pluperfect (Trapassato prossimo) Regular
The trapassato prossimo is “further in the past than another past” — the Italian pluperfect. It pairs with a main past clause to mark sequence.
Avevamo già mangiato quando suonò il telefono.
| Pronoun | Italian | English |
|---|---|---|
| io | avevo operato | I had operated |
| tu | avevi operato | you had operated |
| lui/lei | aveva operato | he/she/it had operated |
| noi | avevamo operato | we had operated |
| voi | avevate operato | you (pl.) had operated |
| loro | avevano operato | they had operated |
Conditional perfect (Condizionale passato) Regular
The condizionale passato is for unreal or missed past results and often appears with se + trapassato prossimo in the protasis.
Avrei accettato, se mi avessero avvisato in tempo.
| Pronoun | Italian |
|---|---|
| io | avrei operato |
| tu | avresti operato |
| lui/lei | avrebbe operato |
| noi | avremmo operato |
| voi | avreste operato |
| loro | avrebbero operato |
Future perfect (Futuro anteriore) Regular
The futuro anteriore says something will already be over before a still-later future, or, like the French, can express a logical guess about a past result.
Entro le cinque, avrà già lasciato l'ufficio.
| Pronoun | Italian | English |
|---|---|---|
| io | avrò operato | I will have operated |
| tu | avrai operato | you will have operated |
| lui/lei | avrà operato | he/she/it will have operated |
| noi | avremo operato | we will have operated |
| voi | avrete operato | you (pl.) will have operated |
| loro | avranno operato | they will have operated |
Subjunctive
Present subjunctive (Congiuntivo presente) Regular
The congiuntivo presente is required after many verbs and fixed phrases of will, fear, purpose, and doubt. Impersonal and semi-impersonal triggers (è importante che) also force the subjunctive mood.
Penso che sia la scelta giusta.
| Pronoun | Italian |
|---|---|
| io | operi |
| tu | operi |
| lui/lei | operi |
| noi | operiamo |
| voi | operiate |
| loro | operino |
Imperfect subjunctive (Congiuntivo imperfetto) Regular
The congiuntivo imperfetto is the past of the congiuntivo system after a past matrix clause and in se + congi. imperf. → condizionale with unreal conditions.
Se avessi più tempo, viaggerei ogni mese.
| Pronoun | Italian |
|---|---|
| io | operassi |
| tu | operassi |
| lui/lei | operasse |
| noi | operassimo |
| voi | operaste |
| loro | operassero |
Other forms
Imperative (affirmative) (Imperativo) Regular
The affirmative imperativo reuses the tu form as 3sg for -are verbs, while other conjugations use the normal tu present. It is the direct command register.
Raccontami com'è andata l'esame.
| Pronoun | Italian |
|---|---|
| tu | opera |
| lui/lei | operi |
| noi | operiamo |
| voi | operate |
| loro | operino |
Imperative (negative) (Imperativo negativo) Regular
Negative commands use non + full infinitive in modern Italian, which is a distinctive rule compared to other Romance languages. Polite or indirect “please don’t” can still soften the tone in context.
Non aprire quella finestra, per favore.
| Pronoun | Italian |
|---|---|
| tu | non operare |
| lui/lei | non operi |
| noi | non operiamo |
| voi | non operate |
| loro | non operino |