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ITALIAN VERB

rifiutare

to refuse

  • #169 most used
  • Regular -are verb
  • Past participle: rifiutato
  • Gerund: rifiutando

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passato prossimo · finished actions: “ho parlato”

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

Imperfect

Imperfetto · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

Futuro semplice · plans and guesses

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

Conditional

Condizionale · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

Congiuntivo presente · wishes, doubts, “che …”

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use rifiutare

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

  1. Present

    Rifiuto sempre i dolci dopo le nove.

    I always say no to sweets after nine.

  2. Past

    Ha rifiutato l'offerta senza pensarci.

    He turned down the offer without thinking about it.

  3. Imperfect

    Da piccola rifiutava di mangiare le verdure.

    As a little girl she refused to eat vegetables.

  4. Future

    Non rifiuterò mai un invito a cena da te.

    I'll never turn down a dinner invitation from you.

  5. Conditional

    Rifiuterei un lavoro così lontano da casa.

    I'd turn down a job so far from home.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Temo che rifiutino la nostra proposta.

    I'm afraid they'll reject our proposal.

  7. Imperative

    Rifiuta con gentilezza, ma rifiuta.

    Decline politely, but decline.

Good to know

  • Rifiutare un'offerta; rifiutarsi di is to refuse to do something: si rifiuta di mangiare.

Verbs like this one

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