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The Trapassato Prossimo Tense

Lesson forty-seven

The trapassato prossimo is the Italian equivalent of the English past perfect tense. It is used to describe an action that occurred before another action in the past. This makes it particularly useful for storytelling or for explaining sequences of past events. Often, it appears in conjunction with other past-tense verbs to provide a clear timeline of events.

To form the trapassato prossimo, you combine the imperfetto form of the auxiliary verbs avere (to have) or essere (to be) with the past participle of the main verb. Its usage signals that one past action had already been completed when another past action occurred.

Avevi già visto questo film?

Had you already seen this movie?

Le avevo chiesto aiuto.

I had asked her for help.

Lui aveva detto che sarebbe rientrato tardi.

He had said he would be home late.

Ieri sera avevo mangiato troppo.

Last night, I had eaten too much.

Quando mi sono trasferita, avevo già imparato l'italiano.

When I moved, I had already learned Italian.

Ti avevo detto di pulire casa, ma tu non lo hai fatto.

I had told you to clean the house, but you didn't do it.

Non avevo capito.

I hadn't understood.

Trapassato Prossimo vs. Passato Prossimo

The trapassato prossimo is closely related to the passato prossimo, which is often translated as the simple past or present perfect in English. Both tenses use auxiliary verbs and past participles, but the key difference is timing:

Passato prossimo: describes a past action without specifying whether it occurred before another past action.
Trapassato prossimo: describes a past action that occurred before another past action.

Passato Prossimo	Trapassato Prossimo
Ha parlato	Avevo parlato
È andata	Ero andata
Ha mangiato	Avevo mangiato
Ha fatto	Avevo fatto

English Examples:

She/he spoke; I had spoken.
She went; I had gone.
She/he ate; I had eaten.
She/he did; I had done.

Imperfetto Forms of Essere and Avere

To correctly form the trapassato prossimo, it’s crucial to know the imperfetto forms of the auxiliary verbs essere and avere.

Essere (to be) Imperfetto:

Pronoun	Conjugation
Io	ero
Tu	eri
Lui/Lei	era
Noi	eravamo
Voi	eravate
Loro	erano

Avere (to have) Imperfetto:

Pronoun	Conjugation
Io	avevo
Tu	avevi
Lui/Lei	aveva
Noi	avevamo
Voi	avevate
Loro	avevano

Remember: when using essere as the auxiliary, the past participle must agree in gender and number with the subject. This agreement rule also applies when direct object pronouns precede the verb and the auxiliary is avere.

Quando ero arrivata al cinema, il film era già iniziato.

When I arrived at the cinema, the movie had already started.

Non ero stato avvertito che la riunione era stata annullata.

I had not been informed that the meeting had been canceled.

Ero già stata in questa città una volta.

I had already been to this city once.

Agreement with Direct Object Pronouns

When a direct object pronoun precedes the verb and the auxiliary is avere, the past participle must agree in gender and number with the pronoun:

Non l'avevo vista, signore.

I hadn't seen her, sir.

Non l'avevo riconosciuta senza occhiali.

I hadn't recognized her without glasses.

Conjugation of Essere and Avere in Trapassato Prossimo

The trapassato prossimo forms of essere and avere combine the imperfetto of the auxiliary verbs with the past participle:

Essere (to be) Trapassato Prossimo:

Pronoun	Conjugation (Masculine Singular)	Conjugation (Feminine Singular)
Io	ero stato	ero stata
Tu	eri stato	eri stata
Lui/Lei	era stato	era stata
Noi	eravamo stati	eravamo state
Voi	eravate stati	eravate state
Loro	erano stati	erano state

Non ero mai stata in questo quartiere.

I've never been to this neighborhood.

Anche loro erano stati invitati alla festa.

They too had been invited to the party.

Avere (to have) Trapassato Prossimo:

Pronoun	Conjugation
Io	avevo avuto
Tu	avevi avuto
Lui/Lei	aveva avuto
Noi	avevamo avuto
Voi	avevate avuto
Loro	avevano avuto

Non avevo mai avuto l'occasione di dirti grazie.

I had never had the chance to thank you.

Io e lei avevamo avuto una relazione da giovani.

She and I had had a relationship when we were young.

Summary

The trapassato prossimo is an essential tense for expressing actions that occurred before other past events. Key points to remember:

It uses the imperfetto of essere or avere + past participle of the main verb.
It often appears in narratives to establish a sequence of past events.
Past participles must agree in gender and number when the auxiliary is essere or when direct object pronouns precede verbs with avere.
It contrasts with passato prossimo, which simply states past actions without establishing precedence.

Mastering the trapassato prossimo will allow you to convey past actions with precision and to describe complex sequences in storytelling or conversation.