Want to talk about your daily routine in Italian? The present tense is your best friend. Today we’ll break down regular verbs (-are, -ere, -ire), show you the patterns, and practice with real-life phrases so you can say what you do, where you live, and what you like—right now.

The big three: -are, -ere, -ire

Italian regular verbs fall into three families based on their infinitive endings: -are (parlare), -ere (leggere), and -ire (dormire). Each family has a predictable set of endings in the present tense. Learn the pattern, and you can conjugate hundreds of verbs!

-are verbs: easy and common

-are verbs are the most common in everyday speech: parlare (to speak), lavorare (to work), mangiare (to eat), guardare (to watch).

Endings for -are in the present:

• io: -o
• tu: -i
• lui/lei: -a
• noi: -iamo
• voi: -ate
• loro: -ano

Tip: Remove -are from the infinitive to get the stem (parl-) and add the endings.

Everyday examples:

• Io parlo italiano. I speak Italian.
• Noi lavoriamo in centro. We work downtown.
• Loro mangiano la pizza. They eat pizza.

Io con mia madre ogni giorno.

-ere verbs: clear, clean endings

-ere verbs are also common: leggere (to read), vedere (to see), vivere (to live), prendere (to take).

Endings for -ere in the present:

• io: -o
• tu: -i
• lui/lei: -e
• noi: -iamo
• voi: -ete
• loro: -ono

Notice the third person plural: -ono (loro leggono).

Everyday examples:

• Leggo il giornale la mattina. I read the newspaper in the morning.
• Voi vivete a Roma? Do you (plural) live in Rome?
• Prendiamo un caffè. We take (have) a coffee.

-ire verbs: two patterns

Most -ire verbs follow a simple pattern like dormire (to sleep). Some -ire verbs add -isc in certain forms, like finire (to finish), preferire (to prefer), capire (to understand). You’ll hear them a lot, so learn both.

Regular -ire endings:

• io: -o
• tu: -i
• lui/lei: -e
• noi: -iamo
• voi: -ite
• loro: -ono

-isc pattern (for many -ire verbs):

• io: -isco
• tu: -isci
• lui/lei: -isce
• noi: -iamo
• voi: -ite
• loro: -iscono

Notice: -isc appears in io/tu/lui-lei/loro, but not in noi/voi.

Everyday examples:

• Dormo otto ore. I sleep eight hours.
• Finiscono la lezione alle tre. They finish the lesson at three.
• Preferisci la pasta o la pizza? Do you prefer pasta or pizza?

Mini phrasebook: talk about your day

Use these starter sentences and swap the verb:

• Io lavoro / studio / viaggio. I work / study / travel.
• Tu guardi la TV? Do you watch TV?
• Lui/Lei vive in Italia. He/She lives in Italy.
• Noi leggiamo insieme. We read together.
• Voi aprite la porta. You (plural) open the door.
• Loro preferiscono il gelato. They prefer ice cream.

Verbs you can plug in:

• -are: parlare, lavorare, mangiare, guardare, studiare
• -ere: leggere, vedere, vivere, prendere
• -ire: dormire, aprire, sentire
• -isc: finire, preferire, capire

Quick checks and common mix-ups

• loro with -ere verbs ends in -ono: leggono, vivono, prendono.
• loro with -are verbs ends in -ano: parlano, lavorano, mangiano.
• -isc verbs add -isc in io, tu, lui/lei, loro: preferisco, preferisci, preferisce, preferiscono; but noi/voi do not: preferiamo, preferite.

If you’re unsure, say the infinitive out loud, drop the ending, and attach the right present ending. Consistency wins!

Practice plan

• Choose 5 verbs (parlare, vivere, dormire, finire, prendere). Write one sentence each for io, tu, lui/lei.
• Record yourself reading them. Try dropping the subject pronoun where it sounds natural.
• Listen to Italian interviews or vlogs, and note each verb you catch in the present.

With these patterns, you can already say a lot about your life in Italian. Keep the endings in mind, swap in new verbs, and—piano piano—your sentences will flow!