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ITALIAN VERB

mentire

to lie

  • #251 most used
  • Regular -ire verb
  • Past participle: mentito
  • Gerund: mentendo

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passato prossimo · finished actions: “ho parlato”

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

Imperfect

Imperfetto · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

Futuro semplice · plans and guesses

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

Conditional

Condizionale · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

Congiuntivo presente · wishes, doubts, “che …”

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use mentire

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

  1. Present

    Lo so quando menti, arrossisci.

    I know when you're lying, you blush.

  2. Past

    Mi ha mentito sull'età per anni.

    He lied to me about his age for years.

  3. Imperfect

    Mentiva così bene che tutti le credevano.

    She lied so well that everyone believed her.

  4. Future

    Non ti mentirò: il film è noioso.

    I won't lie to you: the film is boring.

  5. Conditional

    Non mentirei mai a un amico.

    I'd never lie to a friend.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Ho l'impressione che tu mi menta.

    I have the feeling you're lying to me.

  7. Imperative

    Non mentire, ho visto tutto.

    Don't lie, I saw everything.

Good to know

  • Mentire a qualcuno is to lie to someone; in everyday talk people more often say dire una bugia.

Verbs like this one

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