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ITALIAN VERB

cercare

to look for

  • #37 most used
  • Regular -are verb
  • Past participle: cercato
  • Gerund: cercando

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passato prossimo · finished actions: “ho parlato”

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

Imperfect

Imperfetto · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

Futuro semplice · plans and guesses

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

Conditional

Condizionale · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

Congiuntivo presente · wishes, doubts, “che …”

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use cercare

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

  1. Present

    Cerco un appartamento vicino al centro.

    I'm looking for a flat near the centre.

  2. Past

    Ti ho cercato tutto il giorno, dov'eri?

    I looked for you all day, where were you?

  3. Imperfect

    Cercavo il portafoglio ed era in tasca.

    I was looking for my wallet and it was in my pocket.

  4. Future

    Cercheremo un ristorante aperto la domenica.

    We'll look for a restaurant open on Sundays.

  5. Conditional

    Al posto tuo cercherei un altro lavoro.

    In your place I'd look for another job.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Spero che tu cerchi di capirmi.

    I hope you try to understand me.

  7. Imperative

    Cerca le chiavi nella borsa, forse sono lì.

    Look for the keys in the bag, maybe they're there.

Good to know

  • Cercare already means to look for: cerco le chiavi, no preposition.
  • Cercare di is to try to: cerco di dormire.

Where you hear cercare

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

Italian · Beginner Level 2

  • Cerco lavoro a Fontelupo. I'm looking for work in Fontelupo.
  • Ho cercato la chiave. I looked for the key.
  • Cercherò una casa. I'll look for a house.

Italian · Advanced Level 3

  • Cerco lavoro a Fontelupo. I'm looking for work in Fontelupo.
  • Ho cercato la chiave. I looked for the key.
  • Cercherò una casa. I'll look for a house.
7
Looking for Work at Bruna's

Beginner Level 2 · Buongiorno. Cerco lavoro.

Needs a subscription 4
Hiring Dario

Advanced Level 3 · Cerco qualcuno che sappia fare il pane.

Needs a subscription 19
The Staff Meeting

Advanced Level 3 · D'accordo. Da domani cerco qualcuno.

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Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: regular -are verb.