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fluentbyear

ITALIAN VERB

avere

to have

  • #2 most used
  • Irregular -ere verb
  • Past participle: avuto
  • Gerund: avendo

Conjugation

Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

  1. io I have
  2. tu you have
  3. lui, lei, Lei he/she has
  4. noi we have
  5. voi you all have
  6. loro they have

Past

Passato prossimo · finished actions: “ho parlato”

  1. io I had
  2. tu you had
  3. lui, lei, Lei he/she had
  4. noi we had
  5. voi you all had
  6. loro they had

Imperfect

Imperfetto · “used to” and “was …ing”

  1. io I used to have
  2. tu you used to have
  3. lui, lei, Lei he/she used to have
  4. noi we used to have
  5. voi you all used to have
  6. loro they used to have

Future

Futuro semplice · plans and guesses

  1. io I will have
  2. tu you will have
  3. lui, lei, Lei he/she will have
  4. noi we will have
  5. voi you all will have
  6. loro they will have

Conditional

Condizionale · “would”, polite requests

  1. io I would have
  2. tu you would have
  3. lui, lei, Lei he/she would have
  4. noi we would have
  5. voi you all would have
  6. loro they would have

Present subjunctive

Congiuntivo presente · wishes, doubts, “che …”

  1. io (that) I have
  2. tu (that) you have
  3. lui, lei, Lei (that) he/she have
  4. noi (that) we have
  5. voi (that) you all have
  6. loro (that) they have

Imperative

Imperativo · requests and orders: tu, Lei, noi, voi

  1. tu have!
  2. Lei have! (formal)
  3. noi have! (let’s)
  4. voi have! (all of you)

How to use avere

One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.

  1. Present

    Avete un tavolo per due?

    Do you have a table for two?

  2. Past

    Ho avuto un piccolo problema con la macchina.

    I had a small problem with the car.

  3. Imperfect

    Da bambini avevamo un cane che si chiamava Max.

    As children we had a dog called Max.

  4. Future

    Avrai tempo di passare in panetteria?

    Will you have time to stop by the bakery?

  5. Conditional

    Avrebbe da cambiare dieci euro?

    Would you have change for ten euros?

  6. Present subjunctive

    Non credo che lui abbia il tuo numero.

    I don't think he has your number.

  7. Imperative

    Abbi pazienza, arrivo tra cinque minuti.

    Be patient, I'll be there in five minutes.

Good to know

  • Avere says what you feel as well: avere fame, avere sete, avere caldo, avere vent'anni.
  • The h of ho, hai, ha and hanno is silent; it only tells them apart from o, ai, a and anno in writing.

Where you hear avere

The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.

Italian · Beginner Level 1

  • Hai il quaderno? Do you have the notebook?
  • Ieri ho avuto una giornata lunga. Yesterday I had a long day.
  • Domani abbiamo lezione alle nove. Tomorrow we have class at nine.

Italian · Beginner Level 2

  • Hai il quaderno? Do you have the notebook?
  • Ieri ho avuto una giornata lunga. Yesterday I had a long day.
  • Domani abbiamo lezione alle nove. Tomorrow we have class at nine.
5
A Bear in the Orchard

Beginner Level 2 · Hai avuto paura? · Ho avuto un po' di paura.

Needs a subscription 6
The Forest Ranger

Beginner Level 2 · Molto grande. Ho avuto paura. · Non abbia paura. Non è pericoloso.

Needs a subscription 10
The Dishwasher Broke

Beginner Level 2 · No, signora. Ho tanto lavoro.

Needs a subscription 12
On the Mountain Path

Beginner Level 2 · Quattro ore! Ho sete.

Needs a subscription 21
Too Hot

Beginner Level 2 · Ho caldo.

Needs a subscription 22
The Storm

Beginner Level 2 · Hai una candela? · Ho paura.

Needs a subscription 23
Assunta Is Unwell

Beginner Level 2 · Buongiorno. Ha la febbre? · Ho la febbre.

Needs a subscription 1
The First Cold Morning

Beginner Level 3 · Ho freddo. · Sì, grazie. Ho le mani fredde.

Free 19
Christmas Sweets

Beginner Level 3 · Le ferratelle. Hai la ricetta? · Perfetto. Io ho tutto!

Needs a subscription 28
Tombola at Gino's

Beginner Level 3 · Ottantanove! Ce l'ho!

Needs a subscription 3
Nonna at Your Age

Intermediate Level 1 · Quando avevo la tua età, lavoravo in fabbrica. · Davvero? Quanti anni avevi? · Avevo diciotto anni. · Sì. Non avevamo niente, ma eravamo felici.

Needs a subscription 7
The Day Off

Intermediate Level 1 · Laura! Quando hai il giorno libero?

Needs a subscription

And 61 more lessons.

Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: irregular -ere verb.