How to conjugate ‘fare’ in Italian: All tenses and moods explained

If you're learning Italian, you've likely come across the verb fare — and quickly realized it’s no ordinary verb. You can use fare to communicate that you’re having breakfast, running late, baking a cake or playing the fool, along with a host of other actions. Yes, it’s that versatile. 

At the same time, fare poses a challenge for learners thanks to its irregular conjugations, which don’t follow the same rules as other Italian verbs. To help you master this all-important verb, let’s explore the Italian conjugation of fare in all tenses and moods, with practical examples and idiomatic expressions.

Asian girl on her laptop and writing down on her notebook notes about the fare conjugation in italian

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What does ‘fare’ mean in Italian?

Fare is one of the most important verbs in Italian, as it means both “to do” and “to make.” It’s used in a variety of contexts, ranging from everyday actions to idiomatic expressions.

‘Presente indicativo’ of ‘fare’ (Present simple)

Conjugated in the Italian present tense, fare is used to describe current states and simple facts.

Subject pronounItalianEnglish 
io faccioI do
tu faiyou do
lui/lei fahe/she does
noi facciamowe do
voi fateyou do
loro fanothey do
  • Faccio una torta. (I make a cake.)
  • Facciamo una passeggiata. (We take a walk.)

‘Passato prossimo’ of ‘fare’ (Present perfect)

The passato prossimo of fare describes recent past actions that still hold relevance in the present. It’s formed by combining the auxiliary verb fare in the present tense with the past participle fatto.

Subject pronounItalianEnglish 
io ho fattoI did
tuhai fattoyou did
lui/leiha fattohe/she did
noiabbiamo fattowe did
voiavete fattoyou did
lorohanno fattothey did
  • Ho fatto i compiti. (I did my homework.)
  • Abbiamo fatto una festa. (We had a party.)

‘Trapassato prossimo’ of ‘fare’ (Past perfect)

The trapassato prossimo indicates what happened before another past event. It can add helpful clarity to the timeline of a story.

Subject pronounItalianEnglish 
io avevo fattoI had done
tuavevi fattoyou had done
lui/leiaveva fattohe/she had done
noiavevamo fattowe had done
voiavevate fattoyou had done
loroavevano fattothey had done
  • Avevi fatto una promessa. (You had made a promise.)
  • Avevamo fatto le valigie. (We had packed our bags.)

‘Trapassato remoto’ of ‘fare’ (Past perfect)

The trapassato remoto describes actions completed before another past action. It is rarely used in spoken Italian, but it appears in historical writing and formal documents.

Subject pronounItalianEnglish 
io ebbi fattoI had done
tuavesti fattoyou had done
lui/leiebbe fattohe/she had done
noiavemmo fattowe had done
voiaveste fattoyou had done
loroebbero fattothey had done
  • Ebbi fatto il possibile per aiutarlo. (I had done everything possible to help him.)
  • Ebbe fatto tardi a causa del traffico. (She had been late because of traffic.)

‘Imperfetto’ of ‘fare’ (Past simple/past continuous)

The imperfetto describes repeated or habitual actions and states in the past. It helps set the background in stories and describe recurring situations.

Subject pronounItalianEnglish 
io facevoI did
tufaceviyou did
lui/leifacevahe/she did
noifacevamowe did
voifacevateyou did
lorofacevanothey did
  • Facevo sport ogni giorno. (I used to do sport every day.)
  • Facevamo progetti per il futuro. (We were making plans for the future.)

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‘Passato remoto’ of ‘fare’ (Past simple)

The passato remoto is rarely used in everyday conversation, but it often appears in literature, describing actions or events completed in the distant past.

Subject pronounItalianEnglish 
io feciI did
tufacestiyou did
lui/leifecehe/she did
noifacemmowe did
voifacesteyou did
lorofecerothey did
  • Facesti un buon lavoro. (You did a good job.)
  • Fecero un viaggio memorabile. (They took a memorable trip.)

‘Futuro semplice’ of ‘fare’ (Future simple)

The futuro semplice describes future states or events. It’s the basic form you need for making plans or predictions.

Subject pronounItalianEnglish 
io faròI will do
tufaraiyou will do
lui/leifarahe/she will do
noifaremowe will do
voifareteyou will do
lorofarannothey will do
  • Farò il possibile per aiutarti. (I will do my best to help you.)
  • Farai una sorpresa a tua madre? (Will you surprise your mother?)

‘Futuro anteriore’ of ‘fare’ (Future perfect)

The futuro anteriore describes an action that will be completed before another future event. 

Subject pronounItalianEnglish 
io avrò fattoI will have done
tuavrai fattoyou will have done
lui/leiavrà fattohe/she will have done
noiavremo fattowe will have done
voiavreteyou will have done
loroavranno fattothey will have done
  • Avrai fatto i compiti entro sera? (Will you have done your homework by tonight?)
  • Avranno fatto pace. (They will have made peace.)

‘Condizionale’ of ‘fare’ (Conditional mood)

The condizionale expresses polite requests or desires. It allows you to talk about what would happen under certain conditions, and it’s often used to make expressions more courteous.

‘Condizionale presente’ of ‘fare’ (Present conditional)

ItalianEnglish
io fareiI would do
tu farestiyou would do 
lui/lei farebbehe/she would do
noi faremmowe would do
voi faresteyou would do
loro farebberothey would do
  • Farei una passeggiata, ma piove. (I would take a walk, but it’s raining.)

‘Condizionale passato’ of ‘fare’ (Past conditional)

ItalianEnglish
io avrei fattoI would have done
tu avresti fattoyou would have done
lui/lei avrebbe fattohe/she would have done
noi avremmo fattowe would have done
voi avreste fattoyou would have done
loro avrebbero fattothey would have done
  • Avresti fatto meglio a tacere. (You would have done better to stay silent.)

‘Congiuntivo’ of ‘fare’ (Subjunctive mood)

The congiuntivo expresses doubts, wishes, emotions or hypothetical scenarios, and it’s usually introduced by che (that) or si (if).

‘Congiuntivo presente’ (Present subjunctive)

Subject pronounItalianEnglish 
(che) io faccia(that) I do
(che) tufaccia(that) you do
(che) lui/leifaccia(that) he/she does
(che) noifacciamo(that) we do
(che) voifacciate(that) you do
(che) lorofacciano(that) they do
  • Spero che faccia bel tempo domani. (I hope the weather is good tomorrow.)
  • È importante che facciamo attenzione. (It’s important that we pay attention.)

‘Congiuntivo passato’ (Present perfect subjunctive)

Subject pronounItalianEnglish 
(che) io abbia fatto(that) I did
(che) tuabbia fatto(that) you did
(che) lui/leiabbia fatto(that) he/she did
(che) noiabbiamo fatto(that) we did
(che) voiabbiate fatto(that) you did
(che) loroabbiano fatto(that) they did
  • Non credo che abbiano fatto abbastanza. (I don’t think they did enough.)
  • Spero che abbiate fatto i compiti. (I hope you all did your homework.)

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‘Congiuntivo imperfetto’ (Past subjunctive)

Subject pronounItalianEnglish 
(che) io facessi(that) I did
(che) tufacessi(that) you did
(che) lui/leifacesse(that) he/she did
(che) noifacessimo(that) we did
(che) voifaceste(that) you did
(che) lorofacessero(that) they did
  • Se facessi attenzione, capiresti meglio. (If you paid attention, you would understand better.)
  • Volevamo che facessero più sforzi. (We wanted them to make more of an effort.)

‘Congiuntivo trapassato’ (Past perfect subjunctive)

Subject pronounItalianEnglish 
(che) io avessi fatto(that) I had done
(che) tuavessi fatto(that) you had done
(che) lui/leiavesse fatto(that) he/she had done
(che) noiavessimo fatto(that) we had done
(che) voiaveste fatto(that) you had done
(che) loroavessero fatto(that) they had done
  • Se avessi fatto più esercizio, saresti in forma. (If you had exercised more, you would be in shape.)
  • Speravo che avessero fatto in tempo. (I hoped they had arrived on time.)

‘Imperativo’ of ‘fare’ (Imperative mood)

The imperativo is used to give commands, requests or advice. It can express encouragement, instructions or expectations, depending on the context.

Subject pronounItalianEnglish 
tufaiyou do
noifacciamolet’s do
voifateyou do
  • Fai attenzione! (Pay attention!)
  • Facciamo una pausa. (Let’s take a break.)

‘Gerundio’ of ‘fare’ (Gerund)

The gerundio describes actions that happen simultaneously with or as a result of another action.

The present gerund of volere is facendo (doing). It’s used for current or ongoing states.

The past gerund of volere is avendo fatto (having done). It’s used to indicate completed actions that influenced a subsequent action.

  • Sto facendo una torta. (I am making a cake.)
  • Avendo fatto una pausa, ci siamo sentiti meglio. (Having taken a break, we felt better.)

‘Participio’ of ‘fare’ (Participles)

The participio presente, facente (doing), is found in very technical or poetic contexts, and rarely seen in everyday language.

The participio passato, fatto (done), is used in tenses like the passato prossimo and trapassato prossimo

Note that the participle fatto agrees with the gender and number of the noun it refers to when used as an adjective. For example:

  • Un lavoro ben fatto è apprezzato. (A well-done job is appreciated.)
  • Una torta fatta in casa è sempre migliore. (A homemade cake is always better.)

Common expressions and idioms with ‘fare’

Here are some uses of fare in idioms and everyday language:

ItalianEnglish
fare una domandato ask a question
fare colazioneto have breakfast
fare fintato pretend
fare tardi/prestoto be late/early
fare attenzioneto pay attention
fare la spesato go grocery shopping
fare la codato queue
fare le pulizieto clean
fare storieto complain
fare una bella/brutta figurato make a good/bad impression
fare le ore piccoleto stay up late

FAQs

What is the translation of ‘fare’?

Fare translates to “to do” or “to make.”

Is ‘fare’ an irregular verb?

Yes! Fare is an irregular verb in Italian.

How is ‘fare’ different from ‘creare’ (to create)?

Fare is a verb that describes general actions, while creare (to create) implies making or crafting something original from scratch.

‘Ben fatto!’ (Well done!) 

From its irregular conjugations to its role in countless expressions, fare is a verb every Italian learner needs to master. We've covered all its tenses, moods and everyday uses, giving you the tools to start using this verb confidently. Remember that practicing daily while it’s fresh can go a long way. Try to use fare in common expressions and don’t shy away from speaking — it’s the fastest way to learn!

To solidify your skills, why not join Lingoda? With small group classes, flexible scheduling and native-level teachers, you can practice fare in real conversations and see your Italian soar!

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Imanol Rodríguez Guridi

Imanol Rodríguez Guridi

Imanol Rodríguez Guridi is a Uruguayan polyglot writer with a moderate obsession for world music research. As a former Literature student who realized he should’ve aimed for Ethnography instead, he has spent serious amounts of time thoroughly traveling through over 40 countries, engaging with locals to a maximum degree with the hopes of understanding their traditions, habits, languages, religions, virtues and vices directly from the source. Writing and traveling aside, he’s an Abhyanga massage therapist and loves mixing music.