In short: The Italian infinitive (infinito) is the un-conjugated dictionary form of the verb — parlare, credere, dormire — and one of the three “indefinite moods” (modi indefiniti) along with gerundio and participio. Beyond the basic three conjugation groups, the Italian infinitive has a past form (aver mangiato, essere andato), seven distinct semantic functions inside subordinate clauses (time, cause, purpose, manner, consequence, condition, exception), a role as a standalone noun, and one surprising job as the negative tu imperative. This guide covers all of it.
Most guides to the Italian infinitive stop at the three conjugation endings and the “after prepositions” rule. This one goes further: the infinito composto, the seven functions that make the infinitive one of the most productive constructions in Italian syntax, the da + infinito idioms (buono da morire, tutto da ridere), and the tricky preposition choice after verbs (iniziare a vs finire di). Level B1. Dialog, cheat sheet, mini challenge, quiz and FAQ at the end.
What is the Italian infinitive?
The Italian infinitive is the base form of the verb, the one you find in a dictionary entry. It does not carry information about a subject (person, number) or about time (present, past, future). Italian linguists classify it as a modo indefinito — an “indefinite mood” — alongside the gerundio and the participio. The Treccani entry on infinito defines it as the form that expresses the action stripped of person and time, leaving the context of another verb to anchor both.
- Preferisco leggere al mare. (I prefer to read at the beach. Subject io comes from preferisco.)
- Guidare nel traffico di Roma è davvero faticoso. (Driving in Rome traffic is really tiring. The infinitive here is the subject itself.)
- Non parlare con la bocca piena! (Don’t talk with your mouth full! The infinitive is an imperative addressed to tu.)
Italian has three conjugation groups, identified by the infinitive ending: -are (parlare, first group), -ere (credere, second group), -ire (dormire, third group). Every other Italian verb form derives from one of these three endings, which is why learning the infinitive is the entry point to the entire verbal system.
Infinito semplice and infinito composto
The Italian infinitive has two tenses: semplice (simple) and composto (compound). Some textbooks label them infinito presente and infinito passato, but the labels are misleading: the infinitive has no tense of its own, only aspect (ongoing or completed) relative to the main verb.
| MANGIARE (avere) | PARTIRE (essere) | |
|---|---|---|
| Semplice | mangiare | partire |
| Composto | avere mangiato (or aver mangiato) | essere partito / partita / partiti / partite |
The infinito composto is built with the infinitive of the auxiliary avere or essere plus the past participle. The same auxiliary choice as the passato prossimo and trapassato prossimo applies: transitive verbs take avere, motion and reflexive verbs take essere. Note the optional apocope of avere → aver before the participle (aver fatto, aver detto), which is the form you hear most in careful speech.
- Prima di mangiare, mi lavo le mani. (semplice, action simultaneous or later than the main clause)
- Dopo aver mangiato, faccio un pisolino sul divano. (composto, action before the main clause)
- Dopo essere andata in palestra, Laura torna a casa stremata. (composto with essere, participle agrees with Laura)
- Mario si scusò per aver dimenticato l’appuntamento. (retrospective cause)
🔍 WordReference insight. In the thread “Modi indefiniti — sono sempre intercambiabili?” anglophone learners ask whether infinito, gerundio and participio can be swapped. Native speakers in the thread are blunt: no. Each indefinite mood carries a different shade (the infinito names the action, the gerundio describes manner or contemporary action, the participio describes state or prior action). Mixing them up is one of the clearest markers of a non-native speaker.
The seven functions of the Italian infinitive in subordinate clauses
This is where the Italian infinitive really earns its keep. Inside a subordinate clause, the infinitive can replace a full conjugated verb and signal seven different semantic relationships with the main clause. Italian calls this pattern the proposizione implicita (“implicit clause”): shorter, lighter, and very native-sounding.
1. Temporal (quando?)
- Implicit: Dopo aver cenato, si è addormentata sul divano.
- Explicit: Dopo che aveva cenato, si è addormentata sul divano.
2. Hypothetical (se…?)
- Implicit: Mi annoierei a vivere in un paesino di cinquecento anime.
- Explicit: Mi annoierei se vivessi in un paesino di cinquecento anime.
3. Final (a quale scopo?)
- Implicit: Ho portato la bambina al parco per farla correre un po’.
- Explicit: Ho portato la bambina al parco affinché corresse un po’.
4. Consecutive (con quali conseguenze?)
- Implicit: Era così innamorato da chiederle di sposarlo dopo tre mesi.
- Explicit: Era così innamorato che le ha chiesto di sposarlo dopo tre mesi.
5. Causal (perché?)
- Implicit: Per aver servito il paese con onore, ha ricevuto una medaglia.
- Explicit: Poiché aveva servito il paese con onore, ha ricevuto una medaglia.
6. Modal (come?)
- Implicit: Sono usciti dalla riunione senza salutare nessuno.
- Explicit: Sono usciti dalla riunione senza che salutassero nessuno.
7. Exceptive (tranne…)
- Implicit: A mio zio piace ogni sport, eccetto correre la maratona.
- Explicit: A mio zio piace ogni sport, eccetto la corsa della maratona.
You do not have to memorise the seven labels. What matters is noticing how many things the Italian infinitive can express on its own, without a second conjugated verb. Once you start listening for it, you will find it in almost every Italian news bulletin and in every everyday conversation.
Italian infinitive after verbs: no preposition required
A short list of Italian verbs links directly to a following infinitive with no preposition in between. The link is so tight that the two verbs behave almost like a compound predicate.
- Modal verbs: dovere, potere, volere, sapere. Voglio dormire, devo studiare, posso entrare? For the full story see the Italian modal verbs guide.
- Verbs of perception: vedere, sentire, ascoltare, guardare, osservare. Vedo crescere i miei figli. Sento cantare gli uccelli. The implied subject of the infinitive is the object of the main verb.
- Verbs of preference: preferire, amare, piacere, detestare. Preferirei lavorare la domenica che il sabato. Mi piace cucinare.
- Impersonal verbs: basta, bisogna, conviene, serve, occorre. Non serve insistere. Bisogna prenotare in anticipo.
- Fare and lasciare in causative constructions: Ti faccio vedere la casa. Lascialo parlare, per favore.
Italian infinitive after a preposition: di, a, da, per
Every time an Italian preposition is followed by a verb, that verb is in the infinitive u2014 never in a gerund, never in a finite form. This is one of the sharpest contrasts with English, where after after, before, by, without the verb takes the -ing form.
- Prima di uscire, chiudi sempre la porta a chiave. (Before leaving, always lock the door.)
- Senza dire una parola, si u00e8 alzato ed u00e8 andato via. (Without saying a word, he got up and left.)
- u00c8 uscito per fare una passeggiata nel parco. (He went out to take a walk.)
- Invece di lamentarti, prova a cercare una soluzione. (Instead of complaining, try to find a solution.)
The tricky part is the preposition that links a conjugated verb to a following infinitive. Some Italian verbs ask for di, others for a, a handful take no preposition at all. This split is pure vocabulary: learn the verb with its preposition.
nnnn- a + infinito: iniziare a, cominciare a, continuare a, abituarsi a, riuscire a, imparare a, mandare a, aiutare a. Ho iniziato a studiare il cinese l’anno scorso.
- di + infinito: finire di, smettere di, cercare di, decidere di, accettare di, pensare di, ricordarsi di, dimenticarsi di, chiedere di. Ho finito di lavare i piatti un’ora fa.
- da + infinito: guardarsi da, tenersi da, dissuadere da. Rarer than the other two.
The Accademia della Crusca has addressed the question of which preposition pairs with which verb more than once, confirming what textbooks state: there is no single rule, only a lexical list to absorb by reading and listening.
nnnnDa + infinito: obligation and idiomatic emphasis
nnnnThe preposition da plus an Italian infinitive has two distinctive uses that deserve their own spotlight. First, da + infinito after a noun expresses what must be done, can be done, or is available to do u2014 close to the English “to” + infinitive in “a book to read”.
nnnn- Non ho niente da fare oggi pomeriggio, mi annoio a morte. (I have nothing to do this afternoon.)
- Ho comprato un libro da leggere sul treno per Napoli. (I bought a book to read on the train.)
- La casa u00e8 da rifare completamente: muri, bagno, cucina. (The house needs a full renovation.)
- Ho un sacco di cose da sistemare prima di partire per le vacanze.
The second use is idiomatic: da + infinito after essere or after certain adjectives expresses extreme intensity. Native speakers reach for this construction constantly in informal speech.
nnnn- Questo tiramisu00f9 u00e8 buono da morire. (This tiramisu00f9 is to die for.)
- La situazione al lavoro u00e8 da piangere ogni lunedu00ec mattina. (The situation at work is a disaster every Monday morning.)
- Quel film u00e8 tutto da ridere, vallo a vedere. (That film is hilarious from start to finish.)
- Roba da matti, non riesco a crederci. (Crazy stuff, I can’t believe it.)
🔍 A or da before the infinitive? A real WR thread. Anglophone learners regularly ask on WordReference whether “buono a sapersi” and “buono da sapere” mean the same thing. The short answer native speakers give: “buono a sapersi” is the idiomatic fixed expression (good to know), while “buono da + infinito” belongs to the intensity family (buono da morire). The preposition choice is not interchangeable, it is fossilised by usage.
nnThe Italian infinitive as a noun: il bere, il fare, il dire
nnnnItalian lets the infinitive stand on its own as a noun, with or without a definite article. English usually translates these sentences with an -ing form. The pattern is short, elegant, and very productive in literary and spoken Italian alike.
nnnn- Leggere u00e8 uno dei miei passatempi preferiti la domenica. (Reading is one of my favourite Sunday pastimes.)
- Tra il dire e il fare c’u00e8 di mezzo il mare. (Proverbial: “Between saying and doing there is the sea” u2014 easier said than done.)
- Andare al mercato u00e8 meglio che fare la spesa online.
- Il troppo lavorare non fa bene alla salute. (Working too much isn’t good for your health.)
When the substantivised infinitive takes an article, Italian treats it grammatically as a masculine singular noun: il bere, il fare, il parlare di troppo. The Wikipedia entry on infinito sostantivato traces this feature back to late Latin and notes that Italian is one of the Romance languages where the pattern stayed alive.
nnnnThe surprising imperative: non + infinito for informal tu
nnnnOne specific context flips the Italian infinitive into a direct command: the negative imperative addressed to tu. Instead of a conjugated imperative (non parla! would sound wrong), Italian uses non + infinito.
nnnn- Non parlare con la bocca piena, te l’ho detto mille volte!
- Non cominciare senza di me, arrivo tra cinque minuti.
- Non dire bugie, si vede sempre quando menti.
- Non toccare il forno, scotta!
For voi, Lei and noi the Italian negative imperative behaves regularly (non parlate, non parli, non parliamo). Only the tu form uses the infinitive u2014 a small but striking asymmetry in the Italian mood system.
nnnnCommon mistakes English speakers make
nnnn- u274c Using the gerund after a preposition. *Prima di uscendo, chiudi la porta. Italian needs the infinitive: prima di uscire. English -ing almost always maps to Italian -are/-ere/-ire after a preposition.
- u274c Saying “non parla!” for negative tu. Use non parlare! (infinitive), never a conjugated form.
- u274c Confusing a and di before the infinitive. *Ho finito a mangiare. The verb finire pairs with di: Ho finito di mangiare. Learn the preposition together with the verb.
- u274c Forgetting participle agreement with essere in the infinito composto. *Dopo essere andato, Laura tornata a casa. Laura is feminine: Dopo essere andata.
- u274c Dropping the auxiliary in aver fatto. The apocope gives aver, not no-form at all. Dopo fatto i compiti is wrong; dopo aver fatto i compiti is right.
Dialog: Elena and Pietro organise a camping weekend
nnnn- 👩🏽🦱 Elena: Allora, cosa serve portare per il weekend in campeggio?
So, what do we need to bring for the camping weekend? - 🧔🏼 Pietro: Prima di partire, dobbiamo controllare la tenda: l’ultima volta era tutta da asciugare.
Before leaving, we have to check the tent: last time it needed drying. - 👩🏽🦱 Elena: Giusto. E non dimenticare le torce elettriche come l’anno scorso, per favore.
Right. And don’t forget the flashlights like last year, please. - 🧔🏼 Pietro: Tranquilla. Dopo aver fatto la spesa, passo in ferramenta a prenderne due nuove.
Don’t worry. After doing the shopping, I’ll stop at the hardware store to get two new ones. - 👩🏽🦱 Elena: Guidare di notte in montagna è pericoloso, meglio partire presto sabato mattina.
Driving at night in the mountains is dangerous, better to leave early Saturday morning. - 🧔🏼 Pietro: Sì, anche perché dopo essere arrivati, ci sono almeno due ore di sentiero a piedi.
Yes, also because after arriving there are at least two hours of hiking on foot. - 👩🏽🦱 Elena: Ho di che ridere: mia madre mi ha detto “non lamentarti se piove”. Invece è previsto sole per tutto il weekend.
It’s funny: my mother told me “don’t complain if it rains”. Instead the forecast is sunny all weekend. - 🧔🏼 Pietro: Bene. Mi piace camminare con questo tempo, senza sudare ogni due minuti.
Good. I like walking in this kind of weather, without sweating every two minutes.
Count the Italian infinitives in that eight-turn exchange: portare, partire, controllare, asciugare, dimenticare, aver fatto, prenderne, guidare, essere arrivati, ridere, lamentarti, camminare, sudare. Over a dozen infinitives in less than a minute of conversation. Simple infinitives, compound infinitives, negative imperative (non lamentarti), da + infinito idiom (di che ridere). That is how dense the Italian infinitive is in everyday speech.
nn📌 Cheat sheet: Italian infinitive in seven moves
nnnn- Three groups: -are, -ere, -ire. parlare, credere, dormire.
- Two tenses: semplice (mangiare) and composto (aver mangiato / essere andato). Composto means action completed before the main clause.
- Seven functions inside a subordinate clause: temporal, hypothetical, final, consecutive, causal, modal, exceptive. Italian loves implicit clauses.
- No preposition after: modal verbs, perception verbs (vedere, sentire), preference verbs (piacere, preferire), impersonal verbs (bisogna, basta).
- Preposition link: a for iniziare, cominciare, imparare, riuscire. Di for finire, smettere, cercare, decidere. Learn verb + preposition together.
- Da + infinito: after a noun (cose da fare), in idiomatic intensity (buono da morire, tutto da ridere).
- As a noun: leggere è bello. As negative tu imperative: non parlare!
🎯 Mini challenge: the Italian infinitive
nnnnPick the right form of the infinitive, or the right preposition before it.
n- n
- Prima di ___ (uscire), spegni la luce. n
- Ho finito ___ leggere il romanzo che mi avevi prestato. n
- Ho iniziato ___ studiare il giapponese a quarant’anni. n
- Dopo ___ ___ (mangiare, composto), abbiamo fatto una passeggiata. n
- Non (parla / parlare) con la bocca piena! n
- Mi annoierei ___ vivere in un paesino cosu00ec piccolo. (ipotetico implicit) n
- Questa pizza u00e8 buona ___ morire! (idiom) n
- Laura u00e8 uscita senza ___ (salutare). n
Show answers
n- n
- uscire n
- di n
- a n
- aver mangiato (or avere mangiato) n
- parlare (negative tu imperative) n
- a (“a vivere”, implicit hypothetical) n
- da n
- salutare n
n
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FAQ: Italian infinitive
nnnWhat is the Italian infinitive?
The Italian infinitive (infinito) is the un-conjugated form of the verb ending in -are, -ere or -ire: parlare, credere, dormire. It is one of the three indefinite moods together with gerundio and participio. The infinitive does not carry its own subject or tense; it borrows both from the main clause it accompanies.
What is the difference between infinito semplice and infinito composto?
Infinito semplice is the bare form (mangiare, partire). Infinito composto is the compound form built with the infinitive of avere or essere plus the past participle (aver mangiato, essere partito). Infinito semplice expresses an action simultaneous with or later than the main verb; infinito composto expresses an action completed before the main verb. After dopo, Italian uses the composto: dopo aver mangiato, non dopo mangiare.
What are the seven functions of the Italian infinitive in subordinate clauses?
In subordinate clauses the Italian infinitive can express seven semantic roles: temporal (dopo aver cenato), hypothetical (mi annoierei a vivere qui), final (l’ho portato al cinema per farlo divertire), consecutive (era cosi innamorato da chiederle di sposarlo), causal (per aver lavorato duro), modal (senza salutare), and exceptive (eccetto correre la maratona). Italians use these implicit clauses constantly because they are shorter than the corresponding explicit versions.
Why do Italians say non parlare instead of non parla as a negative command?
The Italian negative tu imperative uses non + infinito instead of the regular imperative form. Non parlare means do not speak, non dimenticare means do not forget. For all other persons (voi, Lei, noi) the negative imperative is regular: non parlate, non parli, non parliamo. Only tu uses the infinitive.
When do I use a and when di before an Italian infinitive?
The choice is lexical, not grammatical. Some verbs take a + infinitive (iniziare a, cominciare a, imparare a, riuscire a, abituarsi a, mandare a, aiutare a), some take di + infinitive (finire di, smettere di, cercare di, decidere di, accettare di, chiedere di, pensare di), and some take no preposition at all (dovere, potere, volere, sapere, vedere, sentire, piacere). There is no single rule: learn each verb with its preposition.
What does buono da morire mean?
Buono da morire literally translates as good to die, but it is an idiomatic Italian intensifier meaning extremely good, to die for. It follows the pattern adjective + da + infinitive for intensity: bello da impazzire, stanco da cadere, brutto da vomitare. The construction is very common in spoken Italian and expresses a high or extreme degree of the quality.
Can the Italian infinitive work as a noun?
Yes, and very naturally. Leggere e uno dei miei passatempi preferiti uses leggere as a subject noun. When the infinitive takes a definite article it is grammatically a masculine singular noun: il dire, il fare, il bere. English usually translates these with a gerund (reading, doing, drinking), but in Italian the infinitive is the correct form.
Related guides: Italian modal verbs (all take the infinitive without a preposition), Italian subordinating conjunctions (their explicit counterpart to the seven implicit functions), Italian adverbs (many phrasal forms work around an infinitive), and Italian trapassato prossimo (the compound past tense that shares the avere / essere + participle architecture).
n
Excellent very clear
Grazie.