Il futuro semplice in italiano esprime azioni certe o intenzioni future; imparerai a coniugare verbi come suonare, ricevere e sentire con le desinenze -erò (prima e seconda coniugazione) e -irò (terza coniugazione).
  1. The verbs of the first and second conjugation are formed by adding the endings -erò, -erai, -erà, -eremo, -erete, -eranno to the infinitive.
  2. The verbs of the third conjugation are formed by adding the endings -irò, -irai, -irà, -iremo, -irete, -iranno to the infinitive.
1a coniugazione: suonare2a coniugazione: ricevere3a coniugazione: sentire (3rd conjugation: sentire)
Io suonerò (I will play)Io riceverò (I will receive)Io sentirò (I will hear)
Tu suonerai (You will play)Tu riceverai (You will receive)Tu sentirai (You will feel)
Lui / lei suonerà (He / she will play)Lui / lei riceverà (He / she will receive)Lui / lei sentirà (He / she will hear)
Noi suoneremo (We will play)Noi riceveremo (We will receive)Noi sentiremo (We will hear)
Voi suonerete (You will play)Voi riceverete (You will receive)Voi sentirete (You (plural) will hear)
Loro suoneranno (They will play)Loro riceveranno (They will receive)Loro sentiranno (They will hear)

Exercise 1: Il futuro semplice

Instruction: Fill in the correct word.

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sentirò, suoneremo, suonerò, sentirà, ballerete, riceveremo, suoneranno, suonerai

1. Suonare:
Noi ... insieme musica pop al festival.
(We will play pop music together at the festival.)
2. Sentire:
Domani io ... la canzone al pubblico.
(Tomorrow I will hear the song in public.)
3. Suonare:
Tu ... il pianoforte per la folla.
(You will play the piano for the crowd.)
4. Suonare:
"Loro ... un pezzo moderno e famoso.
(They will play a modern and famous piece.)
5. Sentire:
Lei ... il violino per la prima volta.
(She will hear the violin for the first time.)
6. Ballare:
Voi ... la musica rock nell'arena grande.
(You will dance rock music in the big arena.)
7. Ricevere:
Domani noi ... la banda in città.
(Tomorrow we will receive the band in town.)
8. Suonare:
Io ... la chitarra al concerto domani.
(I will play the guitar at the concert tomorrow.)

Exercise 2: Multiple Choice

Instruction: Choose the correct sentence in the simple future tense in each group. Pay attention to common errors in conjugating verbs ending in -are, -ere, -ire.

1.
Incorrect: the correct simple future ending -erò is missing.
Incorrect: the simple future of the first conjugation ends in -erò, not in -arei.
2.
Temporal error: 'yesterday' indicates past, so the sentence is not coherent with the simple future tense.
Incorrect form: the complete simple future ending (-erai) is missing.
3.
Incorrect: the correct ending is -iranno, not -ieranno.
'Sentiano' is not a form of the simple future tense.
4.
'Suoneremmo' is the present conditional, not the simple future.
Incorrect form: missing the accent and the correct simple future ending (-eremo).

Overview of the Simple Future Tense (Il futuro semplice)

This lesson focuses on the futuro semplice in Italian, which is used to talk about certain future events or intentions. It is an essential tense for expressing what will happen or what someone will do.

Formation of the Simple Future

The simple future is formed by adding specific endings to the infinitive of verbs depending on their conjugation group:

  • 1st Conjugation (-are verbs): Add -erò, -erai, -erà, -eremo, -erete, -eranno to the infinitive. Example: io suonerò (I will play).
  • 2nd Conjugation (-ere verbs): Add the same endings as the first conjugation to the infinitive. Example: tu riceverai (you will receive).
  • 3rd Conjugation (-ire verbs): Add -irò, -irai, -irà, -iremo, -irete, -iranno to the infinitive. Example: loro sentiranno (they will hear).

Usage Highlights

The simple future is mainly used for:

  • Definite actions that will take place.
  • Intentions or promises regarding the future.

Examples of Common Verbs in Simple Future

1st Conjugation: suonare2nd Conjugation: ricevere3rd Conjugation: sentire
Io suoneròIo riceveròIo sentirò
Tu suoneraiTu riceveraiTu sentirai
Lui / lei suoneràLui / lei riceveràLui / lei sentirà
Noi suoneremoNoi riceveremoNoi sentiremo
Voi suonereteVoi ricevereteVoi sentirete
Loro suonerannoLoro riceverannoLoro sentiranno

Note on Language Differences and Useful Expressions

Unlike English, which uses an auxiliary verb "will" combined with the base form of the verb to express the future, Italian attaches specific endings directly to the infinitive form of the verb. For example, "I will play" translates to "io suonerò," where -erò is the future ending added to suonare.

Useful Italian phrases include:

  • Domani suonerò la chitarra. – Tomorrow I will play the guitar.
  • Riceverai la lettera presto. – You will receive the letter soon.
  • Loro sentiranno la musica. – They will hear the music.

These examples highlight the natural way Italians express certainty or plans about the future.

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Fabio Pirioni

Bachelor in Humanities

University of Udine

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Last Updated:

Saturday, 30/08/2025 09:18