The 'would' tense: The conditional (il condizionale) is the would mood in Italian: «Vorrei un caffè» = I would like a coffee. You use it for polite requests, advice, wishes and hypothetical situations. To build the present conditional of a regular verb, take the infinitive, drop the final -e, and add one set of endings — -ei, -esti, -ebbe, -emmo, -este, -ebbero. For -are verbs the stem's a becomes e, so parlare → parler- → parlerei.
- il condizionale (presente)
- the (present) conditional — the 'would' mood
- l'infinito
- the infinitive — the dictionary form (parlare, credere, dormire)
- la radice del condizionale
- the conditional stem — the infinitive minus its final -e (parler-, creder-, dormir-)
- la desinenza
- the ending — added to the stem (-ei, -esti, -ebbe, -emmo, -este, -ebbero)
- regolare / irregolare
- regular / irregular — regular verbs keep the stem; some common verbs shorten it
- una richiesta cortese
- a polite request — the most common use (Vorrei…, Potrebbe…)
Why it carries the marks: The conditional lifts your Italian from basic to natural. A polite «Vorrei…» instead of a blunt «Voglio…», advice with «Dovresti…», and hypotheticals with «Sarebbe…» all show a range of structures — exactly what Criterion A (Language) rewards. Learn one set of endings and the handful of irregular stems, and you can use it everywhere.
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One set of endings, three verb groups: Build the stem, then add the same six endings to every regular verb: -ei, -esti, -ebbe, -emmo, -este, -ebbero. For -are verbs the a of the stem becomes e (parlare → parler-), while -ere and -ire verbs simply drop the final -e (credere → creder-, dormire → dormir-). Two spelling helpers: verbs in -care/-gare add an h to keep the hard sound (cercare → cercherei, pagare → pagherei), and verbs in -ciare/-giare drop the i (cominciare → comincerei, mangiare → mangerei).
| Person | parlare (to speak) | credere (to believe) | dormire (to sleep) |
|---|---|---|---|
| io | parlerei | crederei | dormirei |
| tu | parleresti | crederesti | dormiresti |
| lui / lei | parlerebbe | crederebbe | dormirebbe |
| noi | parleremmo | crederemmo | dormiremmo |
| voi | parlereste | credereste | dormireste |
| loro | parlerebbero | crederebbero | dormirebbero |
The irregular stems to learn: A few very common verbs use a shortened stem — the endings are exactly the same. Learn these eight: avere → avr- (avrei), essere → sar- (sarei), andare → andr- (andrei), fare → far- (farei), potere → potr- (potrei), volere → vorr- (vorrei), dovere → dovr- (dovrei), venire → verr- (verrei). So I would be = sarei, I would like = vorrei, I could = potrei.
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More than just 'would': The conditional does several jobs. It makes a request polite («Vorrei…» rather than the blunt «Voglio…»), it gives advice («Dovresti…» = you should), it expresses a wish («Mi piacerebbe…» = I would like), and it describes a hypothetical result («Sarebbe bello…» = it would be nice). It also softens an opinion so it sounds less direct.
Uses of the conditional
- Polite requests — «Vorrei un tè, per favore.» (I would like a tea, please.)
- Asking politely — «Potresti aiutarmi?» (Could you help me?)
- Giving advice — «Dovresti dormire di più.» (You should sleep more.)
- Wishes — «Mi piacerebbe visitare Roma.» (I would like to visit Rome.)
- Hypotheticals — «Con più tempo, leggerei di più.» (With more time, I would read more.)
«Vorrei» vs «Voglio»: In real life and in the exam, «Vorrei» (I would like) sounds polite and mature, while «Voglio» (I want) can sound rude. The same goes for advice: «Dovresti» (you should) is far gentler than a command. Reaching for the conditional at the right moment is a quick win for register and tone.
A wish told with the conditional: Here is a short paragraph built one sentence at a time. Each sentence uses the conditional — note the mix of regular (mi piacerebbe, potremmo) and irregular stems (vorrei, sarebbe, dovrei). Read it once for meaning, then tap Mostra traduzione for the English or the audio button to hear it.
IB-style task — il condizionale in azione
Un desiderio, frase per frase
- Se avessi più tempo libero, mi piacerebbe imparare a suonare la chitarra.
- Prima di tutto, vorrei prendere lezioni una volta alla settimana.
- Sarebbe fantastico poter suonare le mie canzoni preferite con gli amici.
- Secondo me, dovrei anche esercitarmi un po' ogni giorno per migliorare.
- Un giorno potremmo persino formare un piccolo gruppo e suonare in piazza.
Steal this for your writing: Notice how few forms you need: a wish with «mi piacerebbe / vorrei», advice with «dovrei / dovresti», and a hypothetical with «sarebbe / potremmo». Swap in your own plans and you have a ready-made, polite paragraph for the oral or a Paper 1 task.
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The slips to watch for: Three mistakes dominate. 1. Forgetting the irregular stem — «volerei» instead of vorrei, «averei» instead of avrei. 2. Mismatching the ending and the subject — «tu vorrebbe» instead of tu vorresti. 3. Dropping the double letters in -emmo / -ebbero — «andremo» (that is the future!) instead of the conditional andremmo. Compare the right version with the typical mistake and the fix becomes obvious.
Corretto
- Vorrei un bicchiere d'acqua, grazie.
- Tu dovresti riposarti un po'.
- Noi andremmo volentieri alla festa.
Errore frequente
- Volerei un bicchiere d'acqua.
- Tu dovrebbe riposarti un po'.
- Noi andremo volentieri alla festa.
Ask: right stem, right ending, double letters?: Before you write a conditional, do three quick checks. 1. Is the verb irregular? Use the short stem (avr-, sar-, andr-, far-, potr-, vorr-, dovr-, verr-). 2. Does the ending match the subject (io -ei, tu -esti, lui/lei -ebbe, noi -emmo, voi -este, loro -ebbero)? 3. Keep the double letters in -emmo and -ebbero — one m is the future.