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ITALIAN VERB

parlare

to speak, to talk

  • #15 most used
  • Regular -are verb
  • Past participle: parlato
  • Gerund: parlando

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passato prossimo · finished actions: “ho parlato”

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

Imperfect

Imperfetto · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

Futuro semplice · plans and guesses

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

Conditional

Condizionale · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

Congiuntivo presente · wishes, doubts, “che …”

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use parlare

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

  1. Present

    Parli italiano molto bene, complimenti!

    You speak Italian very well, congratulations!

  2. Past

    Ho parlato con il capo delle ferie.

    I talked to the boss about the holidays.

  3. Imperfect

    Mia nonna parlava solo in dialetto.

    My grandmother only spoke dialect.

  4. Future

    Ne parleremo con calma domani.

    We'll talk about it calmly tomorrow.

  5. Conditional

    Parlerei volentieri con il direttore.

    I'd gladly speak with the manager.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Spero che parliate un po' di inglese.

    I hope you speak a bit of English.

  7. Imperative

    Parla più piano, per favore, non capisco.

    Speak more slowly, please, I don't understand.

Good to know

  • Parlare con is to talk to someone; parlare di is to talk about something.

Where you hear parlare

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

Italian · Beginner Level 1

  • Qui parliamo solo italiano. Here we speak only Italian.
  • Ieri ho parlato con la nonna di Laura. Yesterday I talked to Laura's grandmother.
  • Domani parliamo alle nove. We'll talk tomorrow at nine.

Italian · Intermediate Level 2

  • Qui parliamo solo italiano. Here we speak only Italian.
  • Ieri ho parlato con la nonna di Laura. Yesterday I talked to Laura's grandmother.
  • Domani parliamo alle nove. We'll talk tomorrow at nine.
7
The Menu Meeting

Intermediate Level 2 · Laura, parliamo del menù di sabato.

Needs a subscription 8
A Difficult Mother

Intermediate Level 2 · Bisogna che Lei parli con sua madre.

Needs a subscription 9
Nonna's Opinion

Intermediate Level 2 · Hai ragione. Domani le parlo.

Needs a subscription 15
Advice at Night

Intermediate Level 2 · Al posto tuo, gli parlerei. · Va bene. Domani gli parlo. Buonanotte!

Needs a subscription 16
Ciro's Doubts

Intermediate Level 2 · Parlale stasera. Fidati di me.

Needs a subscription 23
Donato's Offer

Intermediate Level 2 · Posso parlarLe un momento?

Needs a subscription 4
Giulia Asks

Intermediate Level 3 · Con noi non ne parlava mai. · Non ne parla mai.

Needs a subscription 11
Franco's Numbers

Intermediate Level 3 · Allora, parliamo di numeri.

Needs a subscription 19
The Family Meeting

Intermediate Level 3 · Prima parliamo con Nonna, zio. · Aspettiamo. E parliamo con un notaio.

Needs a subscription 24
The Arrival

Intermediate Level 3 · Niente. Parlavano tutti troppo veloce.

Needs a subscription 29
Nonna's Wish

Intermediate Level 3 · Ne parlo con Pietro. Poi ti chiamo.

Needs a subscription 7
The Lost Brother

Advanced Level 1 · Nonna, parlami di tuo fratello.

Needs a subscription

And 19 more lessons.

Verbs like this one

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