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ITALIAN VERB

ritornare

to return

  • #300 most used
  • Regular -are verb
  • Past participle: ritornato
  • Gerund: ritornando

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passato prossimo · finished actions: “ho parlato”

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

Imperfect

Imperfetto · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

Futuro semplice · plans and guesses

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

Conditional

Condizionale · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

Congiuntivo presente · wishes, doubts, “che …”

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use ritornare

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

  1. Present

    Ritorno sempre volentieri in questo paese.

    I always love coming back to this village.

  2. Past

    Siamo ritornati a Napoli dopo dieci anni.

    We returned to Naples after ten years.

  3. Imperfect

    Ogni estate ritornavamo nella stessa casa al mare.

    Every summer we went back to the same house by the sea.

  4. Future

    Ritornerò a trovarti a Natale.

    I'll come back to see you at Christmas.

  5. Conditional

    Ritornerei domani stesso, se potessi.

    I'd go back tomorrow, if I could.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Spero che ritorniate presto a trovarci.

    I hope you come back to see us soon.

  7. Imperative

    Ritorna quando vuoi, la porta è aperta.

    Come back whenever you want, the door is open.

Good to know

  • Ritornare and tornare mean the same; tornare is the one you'll hear more.

Verbs like this one

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