Pronouns, Essere & Avere
Pronouns, Essere & Avere
Essere (to be) and avere (to have) are the two most important verbs in the language — both wildly irregular, both worth memorizing cold before anything else.
Grammar Comparison
Grammar Comparison
Subject Pronouns Are Usually Dropped
(Io) sono italiano.
I am Italian.
Each verb ending already tells you who's doing the action, so io, tu, lui, and the rest are usually left out — saying them every time sounds as unnatural in Italian as constantly repeating a subject already established in an English conversation. They resurface mainly for emphasis or contrast: '(Io) sono stanco, ma lei è pronta' (I'm tired, but she's ready).
essere and avere: Irregular From the Start
sono / ho
I am / I have
Neither verb follows the regular -ere pattern you'll meet in a later lesson — both must simply be memorized as a pair. They're worth the effort early: avere alone powers common expressions like avere fame (to be hungry, literally 'to have hunger') and avere ... anni (to be ... years old), where English reaches for 'to be' but Italian reaches for 'to have'.
Vocabulary
Vocabulary
- English
- I am
- English
- you are
- English
- he/she is
- English
- we are
- English
- you all are
- English
- they are
- English
- I have
- English
- you have
- English
- he/she has
- English
- we have
- English
- you all have
- English
- they have