The Present Perfect of Italian Verbs

The present perfect (passato prossimo) is used for one off and completed actions that have taken place recently and are usually limited in time.

Most verbs in Italian form the past tense with “avere” (to have).

💬 Examples:
(io) ho cantato – (I) sang / have sung
(tu) hai cantato – (you, sg) sang / have sung
(lei) ha cantato – (she) sang / has sung
(voi) avete sentito – (you, pl) heard / have heard
(loro) hanno sentito – (they) heard / have heard
(lui) ha scritto – (he) wrote / has written
(noi) abbiamo scritto – (we) wrote / have written
Abbiamo scritto una lettera ai nostri genitori. ‒ We wrote / have written a letter to our parents.

💡 If the examples did not seem familiar to you, please, revise the chapters on irregular verbs in the present tense (there you can look up “avere” and “essere” once more) and the one about the past participle.

➠ ... “avere” vs “esse”