The passato remoto, or remote past tense, is used to describe actions that occurred a long time ago. It is no longer commonly used in everyday spoken Italian, but you will encounter it in literature, historical texts, and biographies. Therefore, it’s not essential to focus too much on mastering it for daily communication. The primary reason to study it is to familiarize yourself with the tense, especially if you're reading older works or specific genres of writing.
In everyday spoken Italian, the passato remoto is rarely used, except in the southern regions of Italy, where it is slowly disappearing.
The passato remoto is formed by removing the infinitive endings -are, -ere, and -ire from the verb stem and adding the appropriate endings:
Example with Credere (to believe)
| Pronoun | Translations | Verbs |
|---|---|---|
| io | I | credetti |
| tu | you (informal, singular) | credesti |
| lui/lei | he/she | credette |
| noi | we | credemmo |
| voi | you (plural) | credeste |
| loro | they | credettero |
Example with Finire (to finish)
| Pronoun | Translations | Verbs |
|---|---|---|
| io | I | finii |
| tu | you (informal, singular) | finisti |
| lui/lei | he/she | finì |
| noi | we | finimmo |
| voi | you (plural) | finiste |
| loro | they | finirono |
Example with Leggere (to read)
| Pronoun | Translations | Verbs |
|---|---|---|
| io | I | lessi |
| tu | you (informal, singular) | leggesti |
| lui/lei | he/she | lesse |
| noi | we | leggemmo |
| voi | you (plural) | leggeste |
| loro | they | lessero |
Lessi questo libro quando ero giovane.
I read this book when I was young.
Parlai con lui quando lo incontrai.
I spoke with him when I met him.
Quando glielo dissi, non credette che fosse vero.
When I told him, he didn’t believe it was true.
Essere (to be)
| Pronoun | Translations | Verbs |
|---|---|---|
| io | I | fui |
| tu | you (informal, singular) | fosti |
| lui/lei | he/she | fu |
| noi | we | fummo |
| voi | you (plural) | foste |
| loro | they | furono |
Ungaretti fu un grande scrittore italiano.
Ungaretti was a great Italian writer.
Avere (to have)
| Pronoun | Translations | Verbs |
|---|---|---|
| io | I | ebbi |
| tu | you (informal, singular) | avesti |
| lui/lei | he/she | ebbe |
| noi | we | avemmo |
| voi | you (plural) | aveste |
| loro | they | ebbero |
Il piano non ebbe successo e fallì.
The plan did not succeed and failed.
Fare (to do/make)
| Pronoun | Translations | Verbs |
|---|---|---|
| io | I | feci |
| tu | you (informal, singular) | facesti |
| lui/lei | he/she | fece |
| noi | we | facemmo |
| voi | you (plural) | faceste |
| loro | they | fecero |
Feci una scelta sbagliata e me ne pento ancora.
I made a wrong choice, and I still regret it.
