Grammatica Centrale Quick Guide #3: Essere o avere nei tempi composti

Which auxiliary verb should you use in Italian compound tenses? This quick guide helps take the guesswork out of choosing between essere and avere. It covers transitive and intransitive verbs, verbs of motion and change, reflexive and pronominal verbs, indirect constructions, verbs that can take either auxiliary, and modal verbs.

Examples throughout show the rules in action, with an important reminder about past-participle agreement when using essere.

Digital PDF • 2 pages • Printable reference guide (in color)