The conditional, called condizionale in Italian, is used to express wishes, preferences, and polite requests. In English, it often corresponds to would followed by a verb, as in I would like or I would prefer. The conditional is especially useful in everyday situations, such as ordering food, asking for something politely, or saying what you would like to do. At the A1 level, the most important form to learn is the present conditional, called condizionale presente.
Forming the Present Conditional
The present conditional follows a pattern similar to the Italian future tense. In fact, it uses the same verb stems as the future, but with different endings. For regular verbs ending in -are and -ere, remove the infinitive ending and add -erei, -eresti, -erebbe, -eremmo, -ereste, -erebbero. For example, parlare becomes parlerei (I would speak), and prendere becomes prenderei (I would take). Verbs ending in -ire use the corresponding endings -irei, -iresti, -irebbe, -iremmo, -ireste, -irebbero, as in dormire → dormirei (I would sleep). The ending changes according to the subject, but the same basic pattern applies to most regular verbs.
parlare → parlerei — to speak → I would speak
prendere → prenderei — to take → I would take
dormire → dormirei — to sleep → I would sleep
Some very common verbs have irregular conditional stems, but they use the same endings as regular verbs. These are the same irregular stems used in the future tense. For example, essere (to be) uses sar-, avere (to have) uses avr-, andare (to go) uses andr-, and fare (to do or make) uses far-. Two particularly useful verbs are volere (to want), which uses the stem vorr-, and potere (to be able to), which uses potr-. Their conditional forms vorrei (I would like) and potrei (I could) are especially common in polite requests and everyday conversation. Once you know the irregular stem, you can add the usual conditional endings to form the other persons.
Common Uses of the Conditional
One of the most frequent uses of the conditional is to make polite requests. In Italian, saying voglio un caffè (I want a coffee) is more direct than saying vorrei un caffè (I would like a coffee). Both are grammatically correct, but the second is generally more polite, especially when speaking to someone you do not know. The conditional is also useful for asking someone to do something, as in Potresti aiutarmi? (Could you help me?). These expressions are especially common in restaurants, stores, and other everyday situations. The conditional can also express wishes and preferences. For example, Preferirei restare a casa means I would prefer to stay home. This sentence describes what someone would like rather than what they are definitely going to do. In negative sentences, non comes before the conditional verb, as in Non vorrei uscire (I wouldn't want to go out). The same conditional forms are used in statements and questions, with the meaning made clear by the context and intonation.
Vorrei un caffè, per favore. — I would like a coffee, please.
Potresti aiutarmi? — Could you help me?
Preferirei restare a casa. — I would prefer to stay home.
Non vorrei uscire. — I wouldn't want to go out.
Summary of the Italian Conditional
| Verb group or type | Main rule | Conditional endings or form | Example |
| -are and -ere | Use the future stem with conditional endings | -erei, -eresti, -erebbe, -eremmo, -ereste, -erebbero | Parlerei. — I would speak. |
| -ire | Use the future stem with conditional endings | -irei, -iresti, -irebbe, -iremmo, -ireste, -irebbero | Dormirei. — I would sleep. |
| Volere | Uses the irregular stem vorr- | vorrei | Vorrei un tè. — I would like some tea. |
| Potere | Uses the irregular stem potr- | potrei | Potrei venire. — I could come. |