Software of the Month Club 1996 May

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.Verb Basics 4 ..PRESENT INDICATIVE OF REGULAR AND IRREGULAR VERBS 1 ^F4PRESENT INDICATIVE OF REGULAR AND IRREGULAR VERBS Drop infinitive ending -are (1st conj), -ere (2nd conj), and -ire (3rd conj) and add: -are: -o, -i, -a, -iamo, -ate, -ano -ere: -o, -i, -e, -iamo, -ete, -ono -ire: -o, -i, -e, -iamo, -ite, -ono PARLARE LEGGERE SENTIRE parlo italiano leggo italiano sento la musica parli bene leggi italiano senti la musica parla spesso legge spesso sente la musica parliamo molto leggiamo molto sentiamo l'eco parlate inglese leggete il giornale sentite la radio parlano in classe leggono la rivista sentono la radio I speak Italian. Io parlo italiano I am speaking Italian. I do speak Italian. 1. The tu and noi forms of -iare verbs whose stem ends in -i do not double the -i. Thus: tu cambi noi cambiamo. 2. Verbs ending in -care, -scare, and -gare, insert h before endings which begin with an i. tu dimentichi noi dimentichiamo tu paghi noi paghiamo tu peschi noi peschiamo 3. There is a group of -ire verbs which add -isc to the stem before adding the personal endings. This occurs in the three singular forms as well as in the third plural form. For example, the verb "capire": io capisco noi capiamo tu capisci voi capite lui capisce loro capiscono Some verbs which follow this pattern are: capire to understand prohibe to forbid construire to build restituire to give back disobbedire to disobey spedire to send, to mail finire to finish suggerire to suggest preferire to prefer 4. Very common irregular verbs: essere (to be): sono, sei, è, siamo, siete, sono andare (to go): vado, vai, va, andiamo, andate, vanno avere (to have): ho, hai, ha, abbiamo, avete, hanno dare (to give): do, dai, da, diamo, date, danno fare (to do): faccio, fai, fa, facciamo, fate, fanno sapere (to know): so, sai, sa, sappiamo, sapete, sanno stare (to be): sto, stai, sta, stiamo, state, stanno dire (to say,): dico, dici, dice, diciamo, dite, dicono dovere (to must): devo, devi, deve, dobbiamo, doveste, devono moire (to die): muolo, muori, muore, moriamo, morite, muolono porre (to put): pongo, poni, pone, poniamp, ponete, pongono potere (to be able): posso, puoi, può, possiamo, potete, possono uscire (to go out): esco, esci, esce, usciamo, uscite, escono volere (to want): voglio, vuoi, vuole, vogliamo, volete, volgiono tenere (to hold): tengo, tiene, tiene, teniamo, tenete, tengono venire (to come): vengo, viene, viene, veniamo, venite, vengono 5. USES: The present indicative tense expresses action in three ways: I go (simple present) lo vado I am going (progressive) I do go (emphatic) (a) Only the progressive and emphatic forms can be used in English negative and interrogative sentences. Anna no ci va. Anna does not go there. (emphatic) Anna is not going there. (progressive) Ci va Anna? Is Anna going there? Does Anna go there? $$ ..IMPERFECT TENSE 1 ^F4THE IMPERFECT TENSE 1. Drop the -re of the infinitive and add -vo, -vi, -va, -vamo, -vate, -vano. Volevo partire alle sei. I wanted to leave at six. Tu prendevi caffe. You were having coffe. Il postino distributiva la posta. The mailman delivered the mail. Noi paravamo di molte cose. We spoke of many things. Che leggevate? What were you reading? Loro dormivano molto. They were sleeping a lot. 2. These verbs do not follow this pattern: essere (to be): ero, eri, era, eravamo, eravate, erano bere (to drink): bevevo, bevevi, beveva, bevevamo, bevate, bevevano dire (to say): dicevo, dicevi, diceva, dicevamo, dicevate, dicevano porre (to put): ponevo, ponevi, poneva, ponevamo, ponevate, ponevano trarre (to pull): traevo, traevi, traeva, traevamo, traevate, traevano (a) The imperfect tense: (I) describes repeated or habitual actions in the past. Andavo al cinema spesso. I used to go to the movies often. (II) indicates an incompleted action or one in progress when something else was happening or happened. Io scrivero mentre loro parlavano. I was writing while they were speaking. (III) to describe weather, time, age, physical and/or mental states in the past. Era l'una precisa. It was 1 o'clock sharp. Che tempo faceva ieri? What was the weather like yesterday? $$ ..DA PLUS THE PRESENT 1 ^F4DA PLUS THE PRESENT An action or state of being which began in the past and is still going on in the present: Question Da + quanto tempo (how long) + present? Da + quando (since when) + present? Answer Present tense + da + time expression Da quanto tempo abiti a Napoli? How long have you been living in Naples? Abito a Napoli da dieci anni. I've been living in Naples for ten years. $$ ..DA PLUS THE IMPERFECT 1 ^F4DA PLUS THE IMPERFECT An action or state of being which began in the past and was still going on when another action was completed is expressed: Question Da + quanto tempo (how long) + imperfect? Da + quando (since when) + imperfect? Answer Imperfect tense + da + time expression Da quando studivate Italiano? Since when had you been studying Italian? Lo studiavamo da lulgio. We had been studying it since July. NOTE: (a) DA means "for once" or "since". (b) The English tense is the present perfect (I have ...ed) or the present perfect progressive (I have been ...ing). (c) The English tense used in the past perfect (I had ...ed) or the past perfect progressive (I had been ...ing). Continuing time can also be expressed by CHE: Quanto tempo è che + present? E' + time expression (singular)+ che + present Sono + time expression (plural) + che + present E' + da + any time expression + che + present Quanto tempo èche non fumi? How long have you not been smoking? Sono due anni che non fumo. I have not been smoking for two years. E' da due anni che non fumo. I have not ben smoking for two years. $$ ..PRESENT PERFECT WITH AVERE 1 ^F4THE PRESENT PERFECT WITH AVERE (a) The passato prossimo (present perfect), compound tense, indicates: the simple past (I spoke) and the present perfect (I have spoken). (b) All verbs which take a direct object (transitive verbs) are conjugated with the present tense of the helping verb avere + the past participle (participio passato) of the main verb. (c) The past participle of regular verbs is formed by changing the infinitive endings -are, -ere, and -ire to -ato, -uto, and -ito, respectively; chiamare -> chiamato avere -> avuto finire -> finito Ho comprato. I bought, I have bought, I did buy Ho avuto. I had, I have had, I did have Ho finito. I finished, I have finished, I did finish (d) To form the negative, place non before the helping verb: Non ho comprato niente. I didn't buy anything. Non ho avuto tempo. I didn't have time. (e) These verbs have an irregular past participle: verb past participle aggiungere (to add) aggiunto (added) aprire (to open) aperto (opened) bere (to drink) bevuto (drunk) chiedere (to ask) chiesto (asked) chiudere (to close) chiusi (closed) conoscere (to run) corso (run) decidere (to decide) deciso (decided) dire (to say) detto (said) fare (to do, to make) fatto (done, make) leggere (to read) letto (read) mettere (to put, to place) messo (put, placed) offrire (to offer) offerto (offered) perdere (to take) perduto or perso (lost) rispondere (to answer) riposto (answered) rompere (to break) rotto (broken) scivere (to write) scritto (written) spendere (to spend) speso (spent) togliere (to take from) tolto (taken from) videre (to see) veduto or visto (seen) vincere (to win) vinto (won) $$ ..PRESENT PERFECT WITH ESSERE 1 ^F4THE PRESENT PERFECT WITH ESSERE 1. Intransitive verbs and all reflexive verbs use essere to form the passato prossimo. Used with essere, the past participle must agree with the subject in gender and number. Maria è ritornata a casa. Mary returned home. Siamo andati al cinema. We went to the movies. Le ragazzi si sono svegliate. The girls woke up. 2. These verbs are conjugated with essere: Indefinite Past Participle andare (to go) andato (gone) apparire (to seem) apparso (seemed) arrivare (to arrive) arrivato (arrived) cadere (to fall) caduto (fallen) (di)scendere (to go down) (di)scesi (gone down) diventare (to become) diventato (become) durare (to last) durato (lasted) entrare (to enter) entrato (entered) essere (to be) stato (been) morire (to die) morto (died) nascere (to be born) nato (been born) partire (to depart, leave) partito (departed, left) piacere (to be pleasing to) piaciuto (been pleasing to) restare (to remain) restato (remained, stayed) rimanere (to remain, to stay) rimasto (remained, stayed) (ri)tornare (to return) (ri)tornato (returned) riuscire (to succeed) riuscito (succeeded) salire (to go up) salito (gone up) stare (to be) stato (been) succedere (to happen) successo (happened) uscire (to go out, leave) uscito (gone out, left) venire (to come) venuto (come) vivere (to live, to reside) vissuto (lived, resided) $$ ..PAST PERFECT (I) 1 ^F4PAST PERFECT (I) Formed by combining the imperfect tense of the helping verb avere or essere + the past participle of the action verb: Non avevo più sete perchè avevo già bevuto abbastanza. I wasn't thirsty anymore because I had already drunk enough. Non sono tornato a San Marino perchè ci sono già stato. I didn't go back to San Marino because I had already been there. $$ ..Past Perfect (II) 1 ^F4Past Perfect (II) Formed by combining the preterite of avere or essere + the past participle of the action verb: 1. Found principally in literary language and used after time conjunctions such as appena, dopo che, and quando to express an action which occurred before another past action (usually expressed with the preterite) Appena ebbe finito il libro, si addormentò. As soon as he (had) finished the book, he fell asleep. Dopo (di)+ the past infinitive can be used when the subject of the two clauses is the same. Dopo che ebbe finito il libro, si addormentò. Dopo (di) aver(e) finito il libro, si addormentò. $$ ..FUTURE TENSE 1 ^F4THE FUTURE TENSE Endings are the same for all verbs in Italian: -ò, -ai, -emo, -ete, -anno These are added to the infinite minus its final -e. Regular -are verbs also change the final -a of their base to -e-: parlare: parlerò, parlerai, parlerà, parlermo, parlerete, parleranno mettere: metterò, metterai, metterà, metteremo, metterete, metteranno finire: finirò, finirai, finirà, finiremo, finirete, finiranno Some -are verbs have spelling changes to maintain the original sound: 1. Infinitive endings in -care and -gare add an -h- before the -er base: cercere: cercherò, cercherai, cercherà, etc. pagare: pagherò, pagherai, pagherà, etc. 2. Infinitives ending in ciare, giare, and sciare, change -ia- to -e-: cominciare: cominercò, comincerai, comincerà, etc. mangiare: mangerò, mangerai, mangerà, etc. lasciare: lascerò, lascerai, lascerà, etc. 3. These -are verbs do not change the final -a- of their base: dare: darò, darai, darà, etc. fare: farò, farai, farà, etc. stare: starò, starai, starà, etc. Some verbs in the future tense are irregular only in their base: 1. essere: sarò, sarai, sarà, etc. 2. These drop the final -a- or -e- of their base before adding the endings: andare: andrò, etc. potere: potrò, etc. avere: avrò, etc. sapere: saprò, etc. dovere: dovrò, etc. 3. These double the final -r- before adding the endings: bere: berrò, etc. venire: verrò, etc. rimanere: rimarrò, etc. volere: vorrò, etc. tenere: terrò, etc. The future is used in three instances: 1. To refer to an action or event yet to occur: Andrai in Italia l'anno prossimo? Will you go to Italy next year? 2. In subordinate clauses after time conjungations such as quando, appena, or the word se: Vedrai il Collosseo quando sarai a Roma? Will you see the Colloseum when you're in Rome? Sarò contento se non ci sarà un esame. I'll be happy if there is no exam. 3. To express conjecture or probability in the present: Chi sono quegli stranieri? Who are those strangers? Saranno i cugini di Maria. They are probably (They must be) Mary's cousins. $$ ..FUTURE PERFECT TENSE 1 ^F4THE FUTURE PERFECT TENSE The future perfect tense, usually after such conjunctions as appena, dopo, che, prima di, quando, or se, express a future action prior to another future action. $$ ..PRESENT CONDITIONAL 1 ^F4THE PRESENT CONDITIONAL Conditional endings are the same for all verbs in Italian: -ei, -esti, -ebbe, -emmo, -este, -ebbero. Endings are added to the same base as for the future tense; the infinitive minus its final -e. Some -are verbs change spelling to maintain the original sound; see the rules listed for the FUTURE TENSE. The conditional may be used to express: 1. the English would + verb. Si, ci andrei volentieri. Yes, I would go gladly. 2. a polite request: Mi porterebbe del vino? Would you bring me some wine? 3. a preference: Preferiremmo andare al cinema. We would prefer going to the movies. $$ ..CONDITIONAL PERFECT 1 ^F4THE CONDITIONAL PERFECT The conditional perfect, formed with the conditional of the helping verbs avere and essere plus the past participle of the action verb; used to express what "would have" taken place if someone or something else had not interfered: Saresti andato all festa? Would you have gone to the party? Avremmo detto di sì ma non avevamo denaro. We would have said yes but we didn't have money. $$ ..PAST ABSOLUTE 1 ^F4THE PAST ABSOLUTE Called the Past Definite or the Preterite. Used to express completion of an action or a state of being in the past without relation to the present. Formed by dropping the infinitive ending -are, -ere, and -ire and adding to the root the following endings: -are -ere -ire io -ai -ei (or -etti) -li tu -asti -esti -isti lui/lei -ò -è (or -ette) -ì noi -ammo -emmo -immo voi -aste -este -iste loro -arono -erono (or -ettero) -irono Anni fa io andai a Roma. Years ago I went to Rome. Quando ricevesti la lettera? When did yo receive the letter? Lui finì il lavoro presto. He finished the work early. Noi arrivammo 10 anni fa. We arrived 10 years ago. Perchè vendeste la macchina? Why did you sell the car? Loro aprirono le finestre. They opened the windows. $$ ..REFLEXIVE VERBS 1 ^F4REFLEXIVE VERBS A transitive verb is made of reflexive by using reflexive pronouns (mi, ti, si, ci, vi, si) with the verb form. These pronouns agree with the subject and are placed before the verb: Mi diverto molto. Ci divertiamo molto. Ti diverti molto. Vi divertite molto. Si diverte molto. Si divertono molto. 1. Reflexive verbs are indicated by attaching si to the infinitive minus the final "e" (riposarsi, mettersi, and divertirse). If the infinitive form is required, other appropriate reflexive pronouns may be attached to the infinitive minus its final "e": Devo alzarmi alle otto. I have to get up at 8 o'clock. Potete preparavi. You can get ready. Perchè vuoi fermati qui? Why do you want to stop here? 2. When a reflexive infinitive directly follows a conjugated verb, the reflexive pronoun may be placed before the conjugated verb: Perchè ti vuoi fermare qui? 3. The reflexive verb sedersi has a stem vowel change to -ie- when under stress: Mi siedo Ci sediamo Ti siedi Vi sedete Si siede Si siedono All reflexive verbs are conjugated with the helping verb essere in the preterite. $$ ..RECIPROCAL VERBS 1 ^F4RECIPROCAL VERBS Indicate that two people or things affect each other. Use the plural reflexive pronouns (ci, vi, si) together with the plural forms of the verb: Noi ci amiamo molto. We love each other alot. Vi telefonate ogni sera? Do you call each other every night? Loro non si parlano più. They no longer talk to each other. The preterite of reciprocal verbs is formed with the helping verb essere. Ci siamo visti ieri sera. We saw each other last night. $$ ..PASSIVE VOICE 1 ^F4THE PASSIVE VOICE 1. Only transitive verbs can be made passive. Active Io amo mia moglie. I love my wife. Passive Mia moglie è amata da me. My wife is loved by me. $$ ..IMPERSONAL CONSTRUCTION 1 ^F4THE IMPERSONAL CONSTRUCTION 1. Si + THE THIRD PERSON SINGULAR of the verb expressed the impersonal construction one (you, people, they, we) + verb or it is + past participle. Si mangia bene in Italia. People eat well in Italy. Allora, si parte o no? So, are we leaving or not? Si scrive cosi. It is written like this. NOTE: (a) The verb is always singular in this construction, but nouns or adjectives following it are always in the plural. Se si è istruiti, si può ottenere qualsiasi posto. If one is educated, one can get any job. (b) The compound tenses are always formed with essere. The past participle ends in -o if the verb is normally conjugated with avere; but ends in -i if the verb is normally conjugated with essere. Si è cantato e ballato alla festa. People sang and danced at the party. Si è arrivati alle otto. We (They, People) arrived at eight. $$ ..SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD 1 ^F4THE SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD Used Usd to indicate subjective feelings and emotions and personal points of view, such as uncertainty, doubt, possibility and the imposition of one's will on another. There are four tenses in the subjunctive mmod: present, present, perfect, imperfect, and past perfect. 1. The present subjunctive (il congiuntivo presente) drops the -o of the first person singular form of the present indicative and adds the following endings: -are -i -i -i -iamo -iate -ino -ere -a -a -a -iamo -iate -ano -ire -a -a -a -iamo -iate -ano 2. The following verbs have an irregular present subjunctive: essere: sia sia sia siamo siate siano avere: abbia abbia abbia abbiamo abbiate abbiano dire: dica dica dica diciamo diciate dicano dare: dia dia dia diamo diate diano fare: faccia faccia faccia facciamp facciate facciano porre: ponga ponga ponga poniamo poniate pongano potere: possa possa possa possiamo possiate possano sapere: sappia sappia sappia sappiamo sappiate sappiano stare: stia stia stia stiamo stiate stiano traddure: traduca traduca traduca traduciamo traduciate traducano trarre: tragga tragga tragga traiamo traiate traggano uscire: esca esca esca usciamo usciate escano volere: voglia voglia voglia vogliamo vogliate vogliano $$ ..SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD: USES 1 ^F4THE SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD: USES 1. in independent clauses: (a) in the third person to give polite commands: Venga a verdermi presto. Come to see me soon. (b) in the third person (che being optional) or the first person plural to request, exhort, or urge a certain course of action, in which case it is understood as let or may: Andiamo al cinema. Let's go to the movies. Che lo faccia Gianni! Let Gianni do it! 2. in dependent (or subordinate) clauses, whose subject is different from that of the main clause: (a) after a main clause verb which expresses an opinion, and emotion, a doubt or any imposition of will: Non crediamo che lui lo sappia. We don't believe he knows it. 3. always after the following conjunctions: a meno che...non unless affinchè so that benchè even though finchè non until nel caso che in case perchè so that prima che before purchè provided that sebbene although senza che without Prima che mi dimentichi... Before I forget... Nel caso che tu vada in Italia, scrivimi. In case you go to Italy, write to me. 4. in clauses dependent on a negative antecedent or idea as indicated by such words as nessuno, niente, nulla, non sapere, etc.: Non consco nessuno che sappia quello. I don't know anyone who knows that. Non so dove lui abbia messo la mecchina. I don't know where he put the car. 5. in clauses following a relative superlative or after such adjectives as unico and solo: Questa è la migliore macchina che io abbia mai guidato. This is the best car I ever drove. $$ ..IMPERATIVE 1 ^F4IMPERATIVE There are two ways of giving commands. When addressing family members and friends, use familiar form. When addressing other people, you need to use the polite forms Lei or Loro. 1. Polite commands are borrowed from present subjunctive. Drop final -o from the first person singular of the present indicative and to the remaining base add: -i (Lei) and -ino (Loro) for -are verbs -a (Lei) and -ano (Loro) for -ere and -ire. arrivare -> arrivo -> arrivi and arrivino leggere -> leggo -> legga and leggano venire -> vengo -> venga and vengano (a) Irregular polite command forms: andare: vado -> vada and vadano bere: bevo -> beva and bevano fare: faccio -> faccia and facciano porre: pongo -> ponga and pongano tradurre: traduco -> traduca and traducano (b) These irregular verbs have -ia and -iano as command endings: avere: abbia and abbiano Have! dare: dia and diano Give! essere: sia and siano Be! sapere: sappia and sappiano Know! stare: stia and stiano Stay! Be! (c) Object pronouns (direct, indirect, reflexive, reciprocal, ci or ne) precede the polite command forms. Si alzi! Get up! Me lo dia, per piacere! Please give it to me! (d) Negative commands have non before the affirmative form and before any pronouns. Non dica quello! Don't say that! Non si alzi! Don't get up! Non me lo dia adesso! Don't give it to me now! 2. Affirmative familiar command forms of regular verbs are the same as the corresponding tu, noi, and voi forms of the present indicative, except -are verbs which change the -i endings of the tu to -a. Familiar command endings for the three conjugations: -are -ere -ire (tu) -a -i -i (noi) -iamo -iamo -iamo (voi) -ate -ete -ite cantare spendere dormire finire (tu) canta spendi dormi finisci (noi) cantiamo spenidamo dormiamo finiamo (voi) canate spendete dormite finite (a) Irregular verbs: avere: (tu) abbi (noi) abbiamo (voi) abbiate essere: (tu) sii (noi) siamo (voi) siate sapere: (tu) sappi (noi) sappiamo (voi) sappiate volere: (tu) vogli (noi) vogliamo (voi) vogliate (b) Familiar tu command of these verbs is either a contracted from or the full form of the present indicative. Dire only uses the contracted form for the tu command: andare: (tu) va' (or vai) (noi) andiamo (voi) andate dare: (tu) da' (or dai) (noi) dariamo (voi) date fare: (tu) fa' (or fai) (noi) facciamo (voi) fate stare: (tu) sta' (or stai) (noi) staimo (voi) state dire: (tu) di' (noi) diciamo (voi) dite (c) To negate familiar commands non precedes the affirmative except for the tu form, which is negated by placing non before the infinitive: Canta! Sing! Non cantare! Don't sing! (d) Object pronouns are attached to affirmative familiar commands: Abbracciami e baciami. Hug me and kiss me! (e) With negative tu, noi, and voi commands, object pronouns may either precede or follow the verb. Non lo facciamo! or Non facciamo! Let's not do it! (f) When pronouns are attached to the shortened tu forms of andare, dare, dire, fare, and stare, the apostrophe is dropped and the initial consonant of the pronoun (except for gli) is doubled. andare: va': Vattene! Vacci presto. dare: da': Dalle il libro. Dagli soldi. Dacci una mano. dire: di': Dimmi dov'è. Dille tutto. Digli la verità fare: fa': Fammi quel favore. Fallo oggi! Faglielo sapere. stare: Sta': Stammani bene! $$ ..GERUNDS 1 ^F4THE GERUNDS 1. The present (or simple) gerund is formed by removing infinitive endings and adding -ando to the stem of -are verbs and -endo to the stem of -ere and -ire verbs. This invariable form corresponds to the English -ing form. 2. The past (or compound) gerund combines avendo or essendo (the gerund of the auxiliaries avere or essere) plus the past participle of the verb. When used with essendo, the past participle agrees with subject in gender and number. Infinito Gerundio presente guardare guardando looking at leggere leggendo reading partire partendo leaving Gerundio passato avendo guardato having looked at avendo letto having read essendo partito having left 3. Verbs with an irregular imperfect stem have the same stem in the gerund: bere (bev-) bevendo avendo bevuto dire (dic-) dicendo avendo detto fare: (fac-) facendo avendo fatto porre: (pon-) ponendo avendo posto tradurre: (traduc-) traducendo avendo traducotto Uses 1. The gerundio presente combines with the present or imperfect of the verb stare to express an action in progress. Sto guardano la tivvù. I'm watching T.V. Stavamo bevendo vino. We were drinking wine. (a) With Stare + gerund, reflexive or object pronouns (except loro) may be attached to the gerund or precede it. Stavo alzandomi [or] Mi stavo alzando quando sono caduto. I was getting up when I fell. 2. Alone in a subordinate clause, the gerund expresses conditions or circumstances (time, means, manner or cause) of an action. In English this is presented by the prepositions while, upon, on, in, or by and the -ing form of the verb. The subject of the gerund and main verb must be the same. Avendo letto il giornale, sono partitio. Having read the paper, I left. $$ ..PRESENT PARTICIPLE 1 ^F4THE PRESENT PARTICIPLE A. Formed by adding -ante to the stem of the -are verbs and -ente to the stems of the -ere and -ire verbs: abitare: abitante living conoscere: conoscente knowing servire: servente serving B. Used mostly as an adjective and must agree with the noun it modifies: Ha letto una poesia molto commovente. He read a very moving poem. C. Often used as a noun: Gli abitanti sono simpatici. The inhabitants are nice. $$ ..VERB 'TO BE PLEASING' 1 ^F4THE VERB 'TO BE PLEASING' The verb piacere is not the equivalent of "to like". It means "to be pleasing to". Used mainly in the THIRD PERSON SINGULAR or PLURAL, depending on whether what is pleasing to someone is singular or plural. 1. If what is like is Singular Plural Present piace piacciono Imperfect piaceva piacevano Future piacerà piaceranno Conditional piacerebbe piaccerebbero Pres. Perf. è piaciuto sono piaciuti Past. Perf. era piaciuto erano piaciuti Fut. Perf. sarà piaciuto saranno piaciutti Cond. Perf. sarebbe piaciuto sarebbero piaciuti 2. To indicate recipient of the action, use indirect object pronouns or "A" + disjunctive pronouns: mi <- to me -> A me (a) PIACE is followed by a SINGULAR NOUN or be an INFINITIVE: Mi piace la pizza. -> I like pizza. A me piace la pizza -> (pizza is pleasing to me) Ti piace viaggiare? -> Do you like to travel? A te piace viaggiare? -> (Is it pleasing to you to travel?) (b) PIACCIONO is followed by a PLURAL NOUN: Gli piacciono i vini italiani. A loro piacciono i vini italiani. -> They like wines. $$ $$$ & Italian.lt3