Irregular Second Conjugation Verbs

Irregular Second Conjugation Verbs

Andare, Dare, and Stare
Many important Italian verbs are irregular: they do not follow the regular pattern of conjugation (infinitive stem + endings). They may have a different stem or different endings. There are only three irregular first conjugation verbs (verbs ending in -are):

andare	to go
dare	to give
fare	to do; to make
stare	to stay

* Dare and stare are conjugated as follows:

dare (to give)	stare (to stay)
do	sto
dai	stai
dà	sta
diamo	stiamo
date	state
danno	stanno

The verb stare is used in many idiomatic expressions. It has different English equivalents according to the adjective or adverb that accompanies it.

stare attento/a/i/e	to pay attention
stare bene/male	to be well/not well
stare zitto/a/i/e	to keep quiet
stare fresco	to be mistaken (or kidding oneself)
stare fuori	to be outside
starsene da parte	to stand aside, to be on one side
stare su	to stand (sit) up straight
stare a cuore	to matter, to have at heart
stare con	to live with
stare in piedi	to be standing
stare in guardia	to be on one's guard

Ciao, zio, come stai?	Hi Uncle, how are you?
Sto bene, grazie.	I'm fine, thanks.
Molti studenti non stanno attenti.	Many students don't pay attention.

* Andare and fare are conjugated as follows:

andare (to go)	fare (to do; to make)
vado	faccio
vai	fai
va	fa
andiamo	facciamo
andate	fate
vanno	fanno

If verb andare is followed by another verb (to go dancing, to go eat), the sequence andare + a + infinitive is used. Andare is conjugated, but the second verb is used in the infinitive. Note that it is necessary to use a even if the infinitive is separated from the form of andare.

Quando andiamo a ballare?	When are we going dancing?
Chi va in Italia a studiare?	Who's going to Italy to study?

A means of transportation, if indicated with andare, is preceded by in.

andare in aeroplano	to fly
andare in bicicletta	to ride a bicycle
andare in treno	to go by train
andare in automobile (in macchina)	to drive, to go by car

but

andare a piedi

to walk

As a general rule, when andare is followed by the name of a country, the preposition in is used; when it is followed by the name of a city, a is used.

Vado in Italia, a Roma.

I'm going to Italy, to Rome.

Fare expresses the basic idea of doing or making, as in fare gli esercizi and fare il letto, but it is also used in many idioms.

fare una domanda	to ask a question
fare una fotografia	to take a picture
farsi degli amici	to make friends
farsi la barba	to shave
fare caldo	to be warm (weather)
fare capire	to explain
fare colazione	to have breakfast
fare i compiti	to do one's homework
farsi coraggio	to take heart
fare un errore	to make a mistake
fare freddo	to be cold (weather)
fare la guerra	to make war
farsi in là	to step to one side
fare nascere	to cause, to bring about
fare la spesa	to buy groceries
fare vedere	to show someone something

The verb fare is used in many expressions relating to the weather.

Che tempo fa?	How is the weather?
Fa bel tempo	The weather is nice
Fa cattivo tempo.	The weather is bad.
Ha fatto caldo.	It has been warm.
Qui fa sempre freddo.	It's always cold here.
In primavera fa sempre fresco.	In spring it's always cool.

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