Unit 121 Guidebook: talk about the past
KEY PHRASES
Talk about the past
Fu amore a prima vista.
It was love at first sight.
It was love at first sight.
Lei ebbe una figlia dal suo primo marito.
She had a daughter from her first husband.
She had a daughter from her first husband.
Stette con quel ragazzo per tre anni.
She stayed with that boy for three years.
She stayed with that boy for three years.
Così lui conobbe la sua futura sposa.
Thus he met his future wife.
Thus he met his future wife.
La coppia visse felice fino alla fine.
The couple lived happily until the end.
The couple lived happily until the end.
TIP
Parlò in italiano
You've already seen how to talk about the past, as in ho parlato or sono arrivato.
On top of that, Italian has another way to talk about past events: the passato remoto. It's not very common in spoken Italian, but it's often used in novels.
Parlai al telefono.
I spoke on the telephone.
I spoke on the telephone.
Arrivarono troppo presto.
They arrived too early.
They arrived too early.
These are the special endings you'll see for most verbs.
| subject | verb (andare) |
|---|---|
| io I |
andai went |
| tu you |
andasti went |
| lui / lei he / she |
andò went |
| noi we |
andammo went |
| voi you all |
andaste went |
| loro they |
andarono went |
| subject | verb (potere) |
|---|---|
| io I |
potei could |
| tu you |
potesti could |
| lui / lei he / she |
poté could |
| noi we |
potemmo could |
| voi you all |
poteste could |
| loro they |
poterono could |
| subject | verb (sentire) |
|---|---|
| io I |
sentii heard |
| tu you |
sentisti heard |
| lui / lei he / she |
sentì heard |
| noi we |
sentimmo heard |
| voi you all |
sentiste heard |
| loro they |
sentirono heard |
Io andai a pescare.
I went fishing.
I went fishing.
TIP
Fu amore a prima vista
The verbs essere and avere have extra special forms in the passato remoto. Let's have a look at them!
| subject | verb (essere) |
|---|---|
| io I |
fui was |
| tu you |
fosti were |
| lui / lei he / she |
fu was |
| noi we |
fummo were |
| voi you all |
foste were |
| loro they |
furono were |
| subject | verb (avere) |
|---|---|
| io I |
ebbi had |
| tu you |
avesti had |
| lui / lei he / she |
ebbe had |
| noi we |
avemmo had |
| voi you all |
aveste had |
| loro they |
ebbero had |
Fummo sul treno per dieci ore.
We were on the train for ten hours.
We were on the train for ten hours.
Non ebbi problemi a trovare il suo ufficio.
I did not have problems finding his office.
I did not have problems finding his office.
TIP
The past can't hurt you anymore
Italian verbs have the most special and surprising forms in the passato remoto. But don't sweat it! Being able to recognize them in a book is good enough most of the time.
| verb | past forms |
|---|---|
| fare | feci, fece |
| venire | venni, venne |
| stare | stette |
| volere | volle, vollero |
| dire | dissi, disse |
| conoscere | conobbi, conobbe, conoscemmo |
| sapere | seppe, sapeste, seppero |
| vedere | vidi, vide, videro |
| dare | diede |
| mettere | mise |
Mia sorella mi fece pulire la casa.
My sister made me clean the house.
My sister made me clean the house.