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ITALIAN VERB

cuocere

to cook (food)

  • #283 most used
  • Irregular -ere verb
  • Past participle: cotto
  • Gerund: cuocendo

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passato prossimo · finished actions: “ho parlato”

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

Imperfect

Imperfetto · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

Futuro semplice · plans and guesses

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

Conditional

Condizionale · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

Congiuntivo presente · wishes, doubts, “che …”

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use cuocere

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

  1. Present

    La pasta cuoce in otto minuti, non di più.

    The pasta cooks in eight minutes, no longer.

  2. Past

    Ho cotto le verdure al vapore, senza olio.

    I steamed the vegetables, with no oil.

  3. Imperfect

    Mia nonna cuoceva il pane nel forno a legna.

    My grandmother baked the bread in a wood oven.

  4. Future

    Cuocerò la carne sulla griglia stasera.

    I'll cook the meat on the grill tonight.

  5. Conditional

    Io il pesce lo cuocerei al forno, non in padella.

    I'd cook the fish in the oven, not in the pan.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Aspetta che cuocia bene prima di assaggiare.

    Wait for it to cook through before you taste it.

  7. Imperative

    Cuoci le patate per venti minuti.

    Cook the potatoes for twenty minutes.

Good to know

  • Cuocere is what the food does, or what you do to it; the person who makes dinner cucina.
  • Cotto is cooked; pasta that isn't cooked too long is al dente.

Verbs like this one

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