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ITALIAN VERB

sembrare

to seem

  • #59 most used
  • Regular -are verb
  • Past participle: sembrato
  • Gerund: sembrando

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passato prossimo · finished actions: “ho parlato”

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

Imperfect

Imperfetto · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

Futuro semplice · plans and guesses

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

Conditional

Condizionale · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

Congiuntivo presente · wishes, doubts, “che …”

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use sembrare

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

  1. Present

    Sembri stanco, hai dormito poco?

    You seem tired, didn't you sleep much?

  2. Past

    Il ristorante mi è sembrato un po' caro.

    The restaurant seemed a bit expensive to me.

  3. Imperfect

    Da lontano sembrava una persona che conosco.

    From far away it looked like someone I know.

  4. Future

    Ti sembrerà strano, ma è tutto vero.

    It'll seem strange to you, but it's all true.

  5. Conditional

    Sembrerebbe un buon momento per chiedere.

    It would seem a good moment to ask.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Non voglio che sembri una scusa.

    I don't want it to seem like an excuse.

  7. Imperative

    Sembra sicuro di te al colloquio, anche se non lo sei.

    Look confident at the interview, even if you aren't.

Good to know

  • Mi sembra is it seems to me, I think: mi sembra una buona idea.
  • Sembrare takes essere in the passato prossimo: mi è sembrato strano.

Where you hear sembrare

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

Italian · Intermediate Level 2

  • Mi sembra troppo piccola. It seems too small to me.
  • Mi è sembrato buono. It seemed good to me.
  • Sembrerà un giardino. It will look like a garden.

Italian · Fluency Level 1

  • Mi sembra troppo piccola. It seems too small to me.
  • Mi è sembrato buono. It seemed good to me.
  • Sembrerà un giardino. It will look like a garden.
2
Nunzia's Kitchen

Intermediate Level 2 · Bella? Mi sembra che sia troppo piccola. · Mi sembra di sì. · Mi sembra che ci sia tutto.

Free 20
The Storm at the Wedding

Intermediate Level 2 · Sembra che arrivi un temporale. · Sembra di sì.

Needs a subscription 13
New Year in Naples

Fluency Level 1 · E questi rumori? Sembrano bombe!

Needs a subscription 21
Chiara's Costume

Fluency Level 1 · Mi sento ridicola. Sembro una torta. · Ma va'! Sembri una contessa.

Needs a subscription

Verbs like this one

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