Modern Italian Grammar: A Practical Guide, Third Edition (2013)

Part B. Functions

I. Giving and seeking factual informatio

13. Speaking and writing about the past

13.1 Introduction

Deciding which verb tense to use to describe the past in Italian, and in particular whether to use a perfect or an imperfect tense, is one of the most difficult points for learners to master. Here we look at the three tenses used to describe the past (passato prossimo, passato remote, imperfetto), and the way in which they are each used, individually and together:

Passato prossimo ‘perfect’
Ieri ho lavorato fino alle 5.00 e poi sono andata al bar.
Yesterday I worked until 5.00 and then I went to the bar.

Passato remote ‘past definite’
Ieri lavorai fino alle 5.00 e poi andai al bar.
Yesterday I worked until 5.00 and then I went to the bar.

Imperfetto ‘imperfect’
Di solito lavoravo fino alle 5.00 e poi andavo al bar.
Usually I worked until 5.00 and then I went to the bar.

Combination of imperfetto and passato prossimo
Quando lavoravo lì, sono andata molte volte nell'ufficio del direttore.
When I worked there, I went several times to the director's office.

All the examples here are of verbs in the indicative mood; for details of past tenses in the subjunctive mood, see 2.2.17–19, Appendix II (Regular verb forms) and Appendix III (Irregular verb forms). See also 25.4, 26.2–4, 27.1–2, 29.3–5, 30.5, 31.4.2, 32.2, 33.3, 35.4, 36.3.2, 38.3–5, 39.2–3 in particular, for examples of how the subjunctive is used in complex sentences of different kinds.

13.2 Passato prossimo and passato remoto

When talking about events in the past, regarded as complete, Italian uses the passato prossimo (see 2.2.5) or the passato remoto (see 2.2.6). Both these tenses are perfect tenses and in fact some grammar books refer to them as compound perfect and simple perfect respectively.

The passato prossimo (literally ‘near past’) is often called the present perfect in English, while the passato remoto (literally ‘distant past’) is sometimes called the past historic, leading to the belief that the first is only used to talk about recent events or actions, while the second is only used to talk about historic events. This is only partially true and quite misleading.

The tense most frequently used in spoken and informal written Italian to describe a past action or event is the passato prossimo, a compound tense formed of an auxiliary (avere or essere) and past participle (see 2.1.9):

Sono arrivato la settimana scorsa.

I arrived last week.

Ieri ho comprato una camicia rossa.

Yesterday I bought a red shirt.

Ti è piaciuto il film?

Did you like the film?

Avete conosciuto il direttore?

Have you met the director?

In some areas of Italy, however, the passato remoto (see 2.2.6) is used instead. Here are the same examples as above, this time using the passato remoto:

The difference between the two sets of examples is not one of time, but of regional variation. Across Italy, the passato remoto is much less frequently used than the passato prossimo. You are unlikely to hear the passato remoto used in everyday conversation in northern or most of central Italy (see also 13.4 below). You may, however, hear it in Tuscany and in southern Italy, including Sicily, where it is considered perfectly acceptable.

The different functions and uses of these two past tenses in standard Italian are best explained by example.

The passato remoto represents events in the past which have no connection with the present, i.e. with the time when the sentence is spoken or written. So, when talking about the date someone was born, you would use the passato remoto if that person is no longer alive:

Dante nacque nel 1265. Visse per molti anni a Firenze.

Dante was born in 1265. He lived for many years in Florence.

Pier Paolo Pasolini nacque nel 1922. Fu uno dei più famosi scrittori del Neorealismo.

Pier Paolo Pasolini was born in 1922. He was one of the most famous Neorealist writers.

However, if stressing the relationship of Dante or Pasolini with the present, in other words their continuing influence today, you would use the passato prossimo (see 2.2.5):

Dante è nato nel 1265, e oggi si festeggia l'anniversario della nascita.

Dante was born in 1265, and today we celebrate the anniversary of his birth.

Pier Paolo Pasolini è nato nel 1922, e i suoi film più famosi sono ancora molto popolari.

Pier Paolo Pasolini was born in 1922, and his best-known films are still very popular today.

The passato prossimo is always used if the person is still alive at the present time:

Mio figlio Giovanni è nato nel 1983.

My son Giovanni was born in 1983.

13.3 Using the passato prossimo

The passato prossimo (see 2.2.5) is very similar to the English present perfect (‘I have eaten’, etc.); however the past tenses do not always correspond exactly in their use, as shown below:

Gli ho parlato apertamente.

I have spoken openly to him.

Siamo partiti alle 5.00.

We left at 5 o'clock.

Here is an example of a passage in which you will recognise many examples of the passato prossimo. Some of the past participles shown do not follow a regular pattern (see 2.2.27 and Appendix III Irregular verb forms).

Sono uscito alle 9.00 per andare a far spese e ho incontrato un vecchio amico che non vedevo da molto tempo. Abbiamo deciso di fare 1e spese insieme e siamo andati prima alla Rinascente e poi da UPIM. Alle 11.00 abbiamo bevuto un aperitivo al bar e dopo abbiamo comprato verdura e carne per preparare il pranzo. Siamo arrivati a casa a mezzogiorno e abbiamo cucinato e mangiato con appetito. Alle 2.00 il mio amico è tornato a casa sua, perchè aveva un appuntamento.

I went out at 9.00 to go shopping and I met an old friend whom I hadn't seen for a long time. We decided to go shopping together and we went first to ‘Rinascente’ and then to ‘Upim’. At 11.00, we drank an aperitif at the café and then we bought vegetables and meat to make lunch. We arrived home at midday and we cooked and ate hungrily. At 2.00 my friend went back home, because he had an appointment.

13.4 Using the passato remoto

Although the passato remoto (see 2.2.6) is much less frequently used than the passato prossimo in spoken and informal written Italian, there are certain contexts in which it is used to describe events or actions, in all regions of Italy:

13.4.1 In a historical context

The passato remoto is used frequently in historical narration, as can be seen from this example, taken from a history textbook for primary schools (Strumenti, ed. Alfio Zoi, Editrice La Scuola, 1991, pp. 188–189):

Quando nel 1152, Federico I detto Barbarossa divenne re di Germania, decise di sottomettere i Comuni ribelli. Compì cinque discese in Italia: nella prima (1154) soffocò 1a ribellione di Roma e si fece incoronare imperatore; nella seconda conquistò Milano e riaffermò solennemente i diritti dell'Imperatore sui Comuni (1158); nella terza assediò e distrusse Milano (1163); nella quarta occupò Roma (1168) e nella quinta fu sconfitto a Legnano dalla Lega Lombarda (Alleanza tra i Comuni, decisa a Pontida nel 1167, e appoggiata dal Papa Alessandro III). Per questo dovette riconoscere la libertà dei Comuni con il trattato di pace di Costanza (1183).

When, in 1152, Frederick I, known as Redbeard, became King of Germany, he decided to suppress the rebellious City States. He carried out five raids in Italy; in the first (1154) he suppressed the rebellion in Rome, and had himself crowned emperor; in the second he conquered Milan and with due ceremony reaffirmed the rights of the emperor over the City States (1158); in the third he besieged and destroyed Milan (1163); in the fourth he occupied Rome (1168) and in the fifth he was defeated at Legnano by the Lombard League (an alliance between the City States, set up in Pontida in 1167, and supported by Pope Alexander III). For this reason he was forced to recognise the freedom of the City States, with the peace treaty of Constance (1183).

Note however that when historical events are seen in their relevance to the present time, the passato prossimo is more likely to be used, even if the events happened a long time ago. Here is another example, again from the same textbook Struimenti (p. 248):

La storia moderna di Roma è iniziata nel 1870 quando la città è diventata capitale del giovane Regno d'Italia. Allora Roma contava appena 200.000 abitanti ed anche il suo aspetto urbanistico non era molto diverse da quello dei secoli precedenti…

Anche nel nostro secolo, e in particolare negli ultimi decenni, Roma ha continuato a espandersi per l'afflusso di lavoratori provenienti da tutto il Lazio e dalle regioni centro-meridionali.

The modern history of Rome began in 1870 when the city became the capital of the young Kingdom of Italy. At that time Rome counted scarcely 200,000 inhabitants, and as a town it did not appear very different from previous centuries …

In our own century, and particularly in the last few decades, Rome has continued to grow, because of the influx of workers coming from all over Lazio, and the central and southern regions.

Here the events described, some of which happened more than 100 years ago, are relevant to today's situation (Rome is still the capital of Italy and its population is still expanding because of the influx of immigrants).

13.4.2 In a narrative

Here is another example of the use of the passato remote, this time not in a historical context but in a narrative literary passage (from the novel Requiem by Antonio Tabucchi, Feltrinelli, 1992):

E allora vieni avanti, disse la voce di Tadeus, ormai la casa 1a conosci. Chiusi la porta alle mie spalle e avanzai per il corridoio. Il corridoio era buio, e inciampai in un mucchio di cose che caddero per terra. Mi fermai a raccogliere quel che avevo sparso sul pavimento: libri, un giocattolo di legno, un gallo di Barcelos, la statuetta di un santo …

Well, come on through, said Tadeus' voice, you know the house by now. I shut the door behind me, and headed along the corridor. The corridor was dark and I stumbled into a pile of things which fell on the ground. I stopped to pick up what I had spread over the floor: books, a wooden toy, a Barcelos cock, the statuette of a saint…

13.5 Using the imperfetto

The final tense used in Italian to describe actions or events in the past is the imperfetto (see 2.2.4). This section looks at the use of the imperfetto by itself, while 13.6 considers its use together with the passato prossimo.

The imperfetto is used to describe the following situations.

13.5.1 Parallel events or actions

Two past actions or events can be viewed in a symmetrical relationship, taking place within the same time span:

Mentre lavorava, Anna pensava alle vacanze in Sardegna.

While she was working, Anna was thinking about the holidays.

Il direttore parlava e gli invitati ascoltavano annoiati.

The director was talking and the guests were listening, bored.

Each of the examples above has two parallel actions that take place at the same time and are part of the same situation, described as if seen or experienced from within the situation itself, rather than a set of events viewed in relation to the present time (the time when you are speaking or writing).

— Action 1

— Action 2

13.5.2 Habitual or repeated actions

In the following examples, the actions are not separate individual actions taking place at the same time; they describe the same action repeated, in other words an action that was carried out regularly during the period concerned. In English, this situation can be expressed with the form ‘used to …’.

A Roma andavo tutti i giorni a mangiare in trattoria.

In Rome I went to eat in a trattoria every day.

Da ragazzo facevo molto sport.

When I was a boy, I used to play lots of sport.

13.5.3 Aspect

Another issue to consider is that of ‘aspect’. The general function of the imperfect aspect is to represent past events and actions as if seen from within the past itself.

The following two sentences illustrate how the same event, happening at the same time, can be seen from two different points of view, in other words from two different aspects:

Ieri faceva molto caldo a Napoli.

Yesterday it was very hot in Naples.

Ieri ha fatto molto caldo a Napoli.

Yesterday it was very hot in Naples.

The first example (the imperfect aspect) talks about the hot weather as the condition experienced by people during that particular span of time; the statement could be spoken, for instance, by someone who was actually in Naples yesterday and wants to talk about his/her own experience of the weather.

The second example (the perfect aspect) sees yesterday's weather from outside; the statement could be made, for example, by someone who was not in Naples (for example a weather forecaster) and who wants to tell people about the weather in a more objective detached way.

13.5.4 Describing past events or situations

Here is an example of a narrative, in informal written or spoken Italian, using the imperfetto:

All'Università c'era una gran confusione. Gli studenti, che volevano iscriversi, cercavano di capire che cosa fare mentre gli impiegati della Segreteria non riuscivano a farsi sentire nel gran chiasso. Faceva molto caldo e molti si riparavano all'ombra degli alberi nel cortile.

At the University, there was a great deal of confusion. The students, who wanted to enrol, were trying to find out what to do, while the staff in the Administration Office couldn't make themselves heard in the racket. It was very hot, and many people took refuge in the shade of the trees in the courtyard.

Here we have a descriptive ‘picture’ of a situation, recounted by someone who was there, where the verbs are the elements inside the picture, rather than a completed event or action.

Compare the situation above with a narrative description, which uses the perfect aspect to recount the events taking place one after the other, i.e. when they are not seen as details inside a picture, but as a sequence of single separate actions, as shown in the example below:

Ieri sono andato all'Università e ho trovato una gran confusione. Ho chiesto informazioni in Segreteria e mi hanno detto di aspettare. Faceva molto caldo e mi sono riparato sotto gli alberi nel cortile.

Yesterday I went to the University and I found a great deal of confusion. I asked for information in the Administration office and they told me to wait. It was very hot, and I took refuge under the trees in the courtyard.

Each of these actions had to be carried out before the following one could take place:

|ho chiesto | hanno detto | mi sono riparato |

13.5.5 Narrative using imperfect

Here is a passage from the novel La Delfina Bizantina by Aldo Busi (Mondadori, 1992, p. 53), which uses almost entirely verbs in the imperfect, because it is describing a scene, the background to the action. The description then ends with two verbs in the passato remote: finì, girò:

Era entrata nella stanza adiacente dove adesso i giornali toccavano il soffitto o comunque la sovrastavano pencolanti e minacciosi. Era una vera e propria foresta di carta con scricchiolanti sottoboschi in fondo ai quali vide farsi largo la luce del giorno e lei, la vecchia striminzita imbacuccata in un mucchio di stracci maschili e di coperte. Era in piedi davanti alla finestra rotta e le presentava la schiena. Stava incollando con impasto di acqua e farina bianca un foglio di giornale sul riquadro senza vetro. E contemporaneamente lo stava bisbigliando dalla a alla zeta. Doveva certo essere così assorta da non averla sentita, non si decidera a girarsi. Brunilì finì con calma il duplice lavoro e poi si girò …

She had gone into the adjacent room, where the newspapers now touched the ceiling, or at least towered over her, swaying and threatening. It was an absolute forest of paper, with creaking undergrowth at the other side of which she saw the light of day penetrating and then her, the shabby old woman all muffled up in a heap of tattered men's clothes and blankets. She was standing in front of the broken window with her back turned to her. She was using flour and water paste to glue a sheet of newspaper on the window frame with no glass. And at the same time she was whispering the newspaper text to herself from A to Z. She must have been so absorbed that she hadn't heard her, she didn't give any sign of turning around. Brunilì calmly finished her twofold task, and then turned around …

13.5.6 Progressive imperfect (stare + gerundio)

One very common form of the imperfect is the progressive form. This is formed using the imperfetto of the verb stare together with the gerund of the main verb. This form is fairly familiar to English speakers, being similar in form and use to the English ‘to be -ing’.

Che cosa stavate facendo ieri sera?

What were you doing yesterday evening?

Stavo lavorando quando mi ha telefonato Andrea.

I was working when Andrea called me.

The progressive form expresses an action in progress, i.e. not completed, at a certain moment in time. It cannot be used to convey, for example, the aspects of repetition or description of past events (as mentioned above), where the simple imperfetto is used instead. The progressive form in Italian, as in English, can be used not only in the past, but also in the present and future (see 12.3 and 14.5 respectively).

13.6 Combinations of perfect and imperfect tenses

13.6.1 Scene-setting: introduction

In the sections above, we saw how the imperfect expresses the elements of a past situation, in contrast with the perfect tenses (passato prossimo or passato remote) which see actions or events in their entirety and ‘separateness’. To understand more clearly how the two aspects interact to depict the past we can use the metaphor of a play seen at the theatre: where the scenery or stage set is the background of the play and is represented by the imperfect. The actors, their actions, and the events of the play are in the foreground and represented by the perfect tenses, whether passato prossimo or passato remoto.

13.6.2 Scene-setting in novels

A traditional technique of novelists is to set a scene, using the imperfetto, and to let the characters act within it, using the passato remoto. In each of the following two passages, taken from Leonardo Sciascia's Il Giorno della Civetta(Einaudi, 1981, pp. 9 and 57), it is easy to identify the two aspects, perfect and imperfect:

(a)L'autobus stava per partire, rombava sordo con improvvisi raschi e singulti. La piazza era silenziosa nel grigio dell'alba … Il bigliettaio chiuse lo sportello, l'autobus si mosse con un rumore di sfasciume … Si sentirono due colpi squarciati… Il bigliettaio bestemmiò: la faccia gli era diventata colore di zolfo, tremava …

The bus was about to leave, it was giving out a dull roar, with sudden rasping or hiccuping noises. The square was silent, in the grey dawn … the ticket collector closed the door, the bus moved off with a disintegrating noise … then two shots were heard to rip the air … the ticket collector swore: his face turned the colour of sulphur, he shook …

(b)Il corpo di Parrinieddu era ancora sul selciato, coperto da un telo azzurrastro. I carabineri di guardia sollevarono il telo: il corpo era contratto come nel sonno prenatale, nella oscura matrice della morte.

Parrinieddu's body was still on the asphalt, covered by a blueish sheet. The police on duty lifted the cloth: the body was drawn up as if in an antenatal slumber, in the dark womb of death.

13.6.3 Scene (an ongoing action or event) and a new action or event

A less obvious example of scene-setting is the way in which Italian, even in everyday speech or writing, distinguishes between actions in the past, using the imperfect to describe certain actions that are seen as a background to others. Here are a few examples, where the pattern is that of an action/event happening at a certain moment, set against the background scene of something that was going on at the same moment in time (but also before and possibly after):

Paola è arrivata (event), mentre preparavo la cena (scene).

Paola arrived while I was preparing dinner.

Gli impiegati lavoravano (scene) quando è suonato l'allarme (event).

The staff were working when the alarm went.

Passeggiavamo (scene) lungo il mare, ma all'improwiso è scoppiato (action) un temporale.

We were walking along the sea front but suddenly a storm broke.

13.6.4 Scene (a situation) and a new action or event

Erano le 5.25 quando è esplosa la bomba.

It was 5.25 when the bomb went off.

Sono arrivato alla stazione proprio quando il treno partiva.

I arrived at the station just when the train left.

In both these examples, the imperfetto represents a fact that, although happening in an instant (il treno partiva), can still be seen as the situation, context or background against which something happened.

13.6.5 Cause (imperfetto) and effect (passato prossimo)

Non sono venuto a trovarti perché avevo troppo lavoro da fare.

I didn't come to see you, because I had too much work to do.

Avevamo fame e abbiamo deciso di fare due spaghetti.

We were hungry and (so) we decided to cook a bit of spaghetti.

In these sentences the role of the imperfetto is clearly that of the background to, or cause of, an event.

13.6.6 Same verbs, different patterns

To illustrate the explanations above, here is an example of how the same two verbs can be used in three different patterns:

Parallel actions:
Mentre io riposavo Sandro telefonava a sua sorella.
While I was resting, Sandro was on the phone to his sister.

Sequence of actions:
Ho riposato e poi ho telefonato a Sandro.
I rested and then I telephoned Sandro.

Situation and action/event:
Mentre riposavo mi ha telefonato Sandro.
While I was resting, Sandro telephoned me.

13.6.7 Further examples of passato prossimo/imperfetto

Here are some further examples illustrating the different functions of passato prossimo and imperfetto; read them carefully and see if you can link them to the explanations above:

Ho ordinato gli articoli che mi interessavano.

I ordered the items that I was interested in.

Ieri sera pensavo a quello che mi hai detto e ho capito che avevi ragione.

Yesterday evening I was thinking about what you said to me, and I realised that you were right.

Mi dispiace, non volevo offenderti quando ti ho rimproverato.

I'm sorry, I didn't want to offend you when I told you off.

Ho visitato Firenze con quell'amico che lavorava al Museo.

I visited Florence with that friend who worked in the Museum.

Abbiamo imparato l'italiano a Roma con un professore che non parlava nemmeno una parola d'inglese.

We learnt Italian in Rome with a teacher who didn't speak a word of English.

Quando abitavo a Napoli ho visitato tre volte il Museo Nazionale.

When I lived in Naples, I visited the National Museum three times.

Per quanto tempo hai vissuto in Cina?

How long did you live in China for?

Ho vissuto a Shanghai per tre anni.

I lived in Shanghai for three years.

Quando vivevo in Cina mangiavo il riso tre volte al giorno.

When I lived in China, I ate rice three times a day.

Ieri ho mangiato riso tre volte.

Yesterday I ate rice three times.

13.6.8 Passato prossimo/imperfetto: dovere, potere, volere

With certain verbs, particularly the auxiliary verbs dovere, potere, volere, the choice of past tense is even more important, since it can distinguish an obligation or intention that was not carried out from one that was, as in the examples below:

Volevo andare in banca, ma era chiusa.
I wanted to go to the bank, but it was shut.
(So I couldn't go after all.)

Ho voluto andare in banca.
I wanted to go to the bank.
(The implication is that I did go there.)

Dovevano venire ieri, ma c'era sciopero dei treni.
They should have come yesterday, but there was a train strike.
(They should have come but they didn't.)

Hanno dovuto introdurre un nuovo prodotto per competere con i francesi.
They had to introduce a new product to compete with the French.
(They had to introduce one - and they did.)

Potevi almeno telefonare!
You could have phoned!

Meno male che hai potuto telefonare.

Just as well you were able to phone.

In the first of each pair of examples above, the imperfetto can be replaced by the past conditional (see 2.2.13):

Avrei voluto andare in banca, ma era chiusa.

Avrebbero (sarebbero) dovuto venire ieri ma …

Avresti potuto almeno telefonare …

Non hanno potuto salvare il ragazzo.

They were not able to save the boy.

(One action is implied.)

Non potevano mai uscire perché il padre non glielo permetteva.

They could never go out because their father would not allow them.

(A long-term state or condition is implied.)

13.6.9 Passato prossimo / imperfetto: conoscere, sapere

The choice of tense can also alter the meaning in the case of the verbs conoscere and sapere:

La nostra azienda non conosceva il mercato inglese.

Our firm was not familiar with the English market.

Ho conosciuto il direttore di Marketing alla Fiera di Genova.

I met the director of marketing at the Genova Trade Fair.

(conoscere in the passato prossimo generally means ‘to meet’)

Sapevamo che lui era disposto a trattare.

We knew that he was prepared to negotiate.

L'abbiamo saputo troppo tardi.

We found it out too late.

(sapere in the passato prossimo generally means ‘to learn, to find out’)

13.7 Present tense expressing past

There are two situations in which past events are not expressed either by imperfetto or passato prossimo but by the present indicative tense:

13.7.1 When the event in question is still going on

When the event, action or situation in question is still going on, the present tense is used with da, the equivalent of the English since, to indicate how long it has been going on for:

Studio l'italiano da cinque anni.

I have been studying Italian for five years.

(Implication: And I'm still trying!)

(Literally: I study Italian since five years.)

Compare this with the following example:

Ho studiato l'italiano per cinque anni.

I studied Italian for five years.

(Implication: But now I've given up!)

13.7.2 For dramatic effect

For example, reporting events in newspapers:

Fuori dal bar tabacchi si accende un furibonde litigio. Un signore, in giro con il cane, vede i due sudamericani che si rincorrono.

Outside the bar a furious quarrel started up. A man, out walking his dog, saw the two South Americans chasing each other.

Or in historical descriptions:

Nel settembre 1939 1a Germania invade la Polonia e Francia e Gran Bretagna dich-iarano la guerra. L'Italia rimane fuori del conflitto fino al 1940.

In September 1939, Germany invaded Poland, and France and Great Britain declared war. Italy stayed out of the conflict until 1940.

13.8 Indicators of past time

13.8.1 Time indicators

To say how lone ago the action took place, use fa (‘ago’) and the appropriate length of time:

To express ‘last’ meaning ‘the one just past’, use the adjectives scorso or passato (note that while scorso can come either before or after the noun, passato can only come after):

Here are some common time phrases which can be used to refer to the past:

13.8.2 Negative indicators of past time

When the double negative phrases non … ancora, non … mai, non … più (see 16.6) are used with the passato prossimo, non goes before the whole verb, while the second negative element will normally go after the auxiliary avere or essere, but before the participle:

La consegna non è ancora arrivata.

The delivery hasn't arrived yet.

Non ho ancora mangiato.

I haven't eaten yet.

Non è più venuto.

He didn't come any more.

Non c'è mai stata 1a pace in quel paese.

There has never been peace in that country.

Alternatively, the second negative element can be placed after the whole verb:

La consegna non è arrivata ancora.

The delivery hasn't arrived yet.

Non ho mangiato ancora.

I haven't eaten yet.

Non è venuto più.

He didn't come any more.

Non c'è stata mai 1a pace in quel paese.

There has never been peace in that country.