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ITALIAN VERB

lavorare

to work

  • #44 most used
  • Regular -are verb
  • Past participle: lavorato
  • Gerund: lavorando

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passato prossimo · finished actions: “ho parlato”

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

Imperfect

Imperfetto · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

Futuro semplice · plans and guesses

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

Conditional

Condizionale · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

Congiuntivo presente · wishes, doubts, “che …”

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use lavorare

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

  1. Present

    Lavoro in banca da dieci anni.

    I've been working at a bank for ten years.

  2. Past

    Ieri ho lavorato fino alle nove di sera.

    Yesterday I worked until nine at night.

  3. Imperfect

    Mio nonno lavorava in fabbrica a Torino.

    My grandfather worked in a factory in Turin.

  4. Future

    Da lunedì lavorerò da casa due giorni a settimana.

    From Monday I'll work from home two days a week.

  5. Conditional

    Lavorerei volentieri all'estero per un anno.

    I'd gladly work abroad for a year.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Penso che Marco lavori troppo.

    I think Marco works too much.

  7. Imperative

    Lavorate bene e andate a casa presto.

    Work well and go home early.

Good to know

  • Lavorare is to work at a job; a machine that works funziona.
  • Lavorare da casa is to work from home.

Where you hear lavorare

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

Italian · Beginner Level 2

  • Lavoro da Bruna. I work at Bruna's.
  • Ho lavorato dieci anni a Boston. I worked ten years in Boston.
  • Lavorerò domani alle sette. I'll work tomorrow at seven.

Italian · Intermediate Level 1

  • Lavoro da Bruna. I work at Bruna's.
  • Ho lavorato dieci anni a Boston. I worked ten years in Boston.
  • Lavorerò domani alle sette. I'll work tomorrow at seven.
7
Looking for Work at Bruna's

Beginner Level 2 · Ha lavorato in Italia? · No, a Boston. Ho lavorato dieci anni. · Ho lavorato in un ristorante.

Needs a subscription 19
Where Did They Go

Beginner Level 2 · Ha lavorato trent'anni in una fabbrica. · Ho lavorato tanto.

Needs a subscription 25
Payday

Beginner Level 2 · Già? Ho lavorato venti giorni. · Ho lavorato tanto. · Brava. Hai lavorato bene.

Needs a subscription 26
The Wheat Harvest

Beginner Level 2 · Tutto. Abbiamo lavorato tre giorni.

Needs a subscription 2
The Kitchen Brigade

Intermediate Level 1 · Volentieri! Da quanto tempo lavori qui? · Da dieci anni. Prima lavoravo a Bolzano. · Prima lavoravo a Roma. · Ho lavorato dieci anni a Boston.

Free 3
Nonna at Your Age

Intermediate Level 1 · Diciotto. Lavoravamo dieci ore al giorno.

Needs a subscription 9
Pietro on the Phone

Intermediate Level 1 · Lunga! Ho lavorato tutti i giorni.

Needs a subscription 17
Nonna's First Job

Intermediate Level 1 · Da sola. Lavoravo in una casa grande. · Lavoravo tanto.

Needs a subscription 25
A Guest from Boston

Intermediate Level 1 · Anch'io! Da quanto tempo lavora qui?

Needs a subscription 26
The End of the Season

Intermediate Level 1 · Ragazzi, avete lavorato bene.

Needs a subscription 2
The First Chapter

Intermediate Level 3 · Mia madre lavorava sempre. Non si fermava mai.

Free 28
The Result

Advanced Level 2 · Giusto. Adesso si lavora insieme.

Needs a subscription

And 4 more lessons.

Verbs like this one

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