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ITALIAN VERB

obbligare

to oblige, to force

  • #254 most used
  • Regular -are verb
  • Past participle: obbligato
  • Gerund: obbligando

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passato prossimo · finished actions: “ho parlato”

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

Imperfect

Imperfetto · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

Futuro semplice · plans and guesses

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

Conditional

Condizionale · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

Congiuntivo presente · wishes, doubts, “che …”

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use obbligare

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

  1. Present

    Nessuno ti obbliga a venire.

    Nobody is forcing you to come.

  2. Past

    La pioggia ci ha obbligato a restare a casa.

    The rain forced us to stay home.

  3. Imperfect

    La scuola ci obbligava a portare la divisa.

    The school made us wear a uniform.

  4. Future

    Il medico lo obbligherà a smettere di fumare.

    The doctor will make him stop smoking.

  5. Conditional

    Non obbligherei mai un bambino a finire il piatto.

    I'd never force a child to finish their plate.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Non voglio che tu obblighi tua figlia a studiare pianoforte.

    I don't want you to force your daughter to study piano.

  7. Imperative

    Non obbligarlo a parlare, se non vuole.

    Don't force him to talk, if he doesn't want to.

Good to know

  • Obbligare qualcuno a fare: the action comes after a. Essere obbligato a is to have to.

Verbs like this one

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