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ITALIAN VERB

conoscere

to know (a person or a place), to meet for the first time

  • #34 most used
  • Irregular -ere verb
  • Past participle: conosciuto
  • Gerund: conoscendo

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passato prossimo · finished actions: “ho parlato”

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

Imperfect

Imperfetto · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

Futuro semplice · plans and guesses

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

Conditional

Condizionale · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

Congiuntivo presente · wishes, doubts, “che …”

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use conoscere

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

  1. Present

    Conosci un buon dentista in zona?

    Do you know a good dentist around here?

  2. Past

    Ho conosciuto mia moglie a una festa.

    I met my wife at a party.

  3. Imperfect

    Conoscevo bene quella strada, ci passavo ogni giorno.

    I knew that street well, I went down it every day.

  4. Future

    Conoscerai i miei genitori a Natale.

    You'll meet my parents at Christmas.

  5. Conditional

    Conoscerei volentieri tua sorella, ne parli sempre.

    I'd love to meet your sister, you always talk about her.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Non credo che Luca conosca Venezia.

    I don't think Luca knows Venice.

  7. Imperative

    Conosci te stesso, diceva il filosofo.

    Know thyself, as the philosopher said.

Good to know

  • Conoscere is to know a person or a place; sapere is to know a fact or how to do something.
  • In the passato prossimo it is to meet for the first time: ci siamo conosciuti a Roma.
  • Piacere di conoscerla is nice to meet you, the formal way.

Where you hear conoscere

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

Italian · Intermediate Level 1

  • Conosco bene Roma. I know Rome well.
  • Ho conosciuto un ragazzo sulla pista. I met a boy on the slopes.
  • Domani conoscerai mia nonna. Tomorrow you'll meet my grandmother.

Italian · Intermediate Level 2

  • Conosco bene Roma. I know Rome well.
  • Ho conosciuto un ragazzo sulla pista. I met a boy on the slopes.
  • Domani conoscerai mia nonna. Tomorrow you'll meet my grandmother.
19
Chiara Is in Love

Intermediate Level 1 · Ho conosciuto un ragazzo. Qui, sulla pista.

Needs a subscription 18
A Day at the Sea

Intermediate Level 2 · No, mangiamo lì. Conosco un posto.

Needs a subscription 8
Pietro's Grandfather

Intermediate Level 3 · Tuo nonno conosceva mia nonna?

Needs a subscription 10
Door to Door

Advanced Level 2 · Lei conosce Fontelupo meglio di tutti.

Needs a subscription 18
Nonna's Reaction

Advanced Level 3 · Il pane lo conoscono i tuoi clienti.

Needs a subscription 6
Pietro's Version of the Wolf

Fluency Level 2 · Pietro, tu conosci il lupo della fontana?

Needs a subscription 14
What She Found in America

Fluency Level 2 · Per un anno. Poi conobbi tuo nonno.

Needs a subscription 29
Nonna's Answer

Fluency Level 2 · Sul serio. Voglio conoscere il piccolo Vincenzo.

Needs a subscription 30
The Ticket

Fluency Level 2 · Vincenzo conoscerà Nonna Teresa. Che bello.

Needs a subscription 13
The Village at the Fountain

Fluency Level 3 · Per me? Ma io non conosco più nessuno. · Ci conoscerà tutti, signora. Piano piano.

Needs a subscription

Verbs like this one

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