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Italian dire Conjugation
“to say / to tell” · 说 · all seven simple tenses plus the past participle
Present tenseio dico · tu dici · lui / lei dice · noi diciamo · voi dite · loro dicono
Dire ("to say / to tell") keeps its c through most of the present — dico, dici, dice, diciamo, dicono — but the second plural drops it: dite. The past participle detto is irregular, and the future contracts to dir-.
Below are the complete dire tables for all seven simple tenses, how to report what someone said, and the set phrases built on detto and diciamo.
Present indicativeIndicativo presente
States what is true or happening now, plus habits and general facts.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | dico |
| tu | dici |
| lui / lei | dice |
| noi | diciamo |
| voi | dite |
| loro | dicono |
Example:Studio italiano ogni giorno.
I study Italian every day.
ImperfectIndicativo imperfetto
Describes past background, ongoing states, and repeated behaviour.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | dicevo |
| tu | dicevi |
| lui / lei | diceva |
| noi | dicevamo |
| voi | dicevate |
| loro | dicevano |
Example:Da piccolo giocavo qui.
I used to play here as a child.
Historic pastIndicativo passato remoto
Narrates a past event seen as complete, mainly in writing; spoken usage varies by region.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | dissi |
| tu | dicesti |
| lui / lei | disse |
| noi | dicemmo |
| voi | diceste |
| loro | dissero |
Example:Dante nacque nel 1265.
Dante was born in 1265.
FutureIndicativo futuro semplice
Refers to the future, and can also express a guess about the present.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | dirò |
| tu | dirai |
| lui / lei | dirà |
| noi | diremo |
| voi | direte |
| loro | diranno |
Example:Domani partirò presto.
Tomorrow I will leave early.
ConditionalCondizionale presente
Used for polite requests and wishes, and for what would happen under a condition.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | direi |
| tu | diresti |
| lui / lei | direbbe |
| noi | diremmo |
| voi | direste |
| loro | direbbero |
Example:Vorrei un caffè.
I would like a coffee.
Present subjunctiveCongiuntivo presente
Common in clauses after certain verbs and conjunctions to express wishes, judgements and doubts; use depends on the construction.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | dica |
| tu | dica |
| lui / lei | dica |
| noi | diciamo |
| voi | diciate |
| loro | dicano |
Example:Spero che tu stia bene.
I hope you are well.
Imperfect subjunctiveCongiuntivo imperfetto
Follows some past main clauses, and appears in hypothetical conditions.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | dicessi |
| tu | dicessi |
| lui / lei | dicesse |
| noi | dicessimo |
| voi | diceste |
| loro | dicessero |
Example:Se avessi tempo, leggerei di più.
If I had time, I would read more.
Past participle Participio passato
- masculine singular
- detto
- feminine singular
- detta
- masculine plural
- detti
- feminine plural
- dette
Auxiliary: Dire takes avere: ho detto. The participle detto agrees only with a preceding direct object pronoun.
How it is used
The forms that surprise
Learn four departures from the regular -ere pattern and the rest follows: dite in the present, the future on dir- (dirò, dirai, dirà), the historic past dissi, disse, dissero, and the participle detto. The subjunctive keeps the c: che io dica, che loro dicano.
Dire a, dire di, dire che
Dire takes an indirect object with a: dico a Maria di venire (I tell Maria to come). Reported speech uses dire che with the mood the sentence asks for: ha detto che veniva (he said he was coming). To ask what a word means, Italians use che cosa vuol dire?, literally "what does it want to say".
Set phrases with detto
Detto fatto (said and done), diciamo che (let's say), vale a dire (that is to say), non dirlo a nessuno (don't tell anyone), e dire che... (and to think that...). Farsi dire is to get someone to tell you: fammi dire (let me hear / tell me about it).
Questions learners ask
What is the past participle of dire?
Detto, which is irregular: detto, detta, detti, dette. Compound tenses use avere — ho detto — and the participle agrees only with a preceding object pronoun: l'ho detta.
Dire or parlare?
Dire says something specific: dice una bugia (he tells a lie). Parlare is the act of talking or a language: parla con Marco, parla italiano.
What is diciamo?
Both the first plural present (we say) and a hedge meaning let's say: diciamo verso le otto (let's say around eight). As an imperative it is also how Italians say let's do it.
How do I say "tell me"?
Dimmi! to a friend, mi dica! in the formal Lei, ditemi! to several people. The bare tu imperative of dire is di', as in di' la verità (tell the truth). The compound past stays avere: ho detto.
中文说明
dire：说 · 主动用法通常用 avere：ho detto。
- 直陈式现在时 · Indicativo presente
- 直陈式未完成过去时 · Indicativo imperfetto
- 直陈式远过去时 · Indicativo passato remoto
- 直陈式简单将来时 · Indicativo futuro semplice
- 条件式现在时 · Condizionale presente
- 虚拟式现在时 · Congiuntivo presente
- 虚拟式未完成过去时 · Congiuntivo imperfetto
Practise dire
Present indicative · io
Practise in the order io, tu, lui / lei, noi, voi, loro, then move on to the next tense.
Put the forms back into sentences
Meet the same verb in real contexts with the grammar notes and the graded reading material.
Italian grammarMore Italian study material