Introduction
The presente describes what is happening now, habits and general facts. Italian has no separate -ing form for actions in progress, so lavoro can mean both "I work" and "I'm working".
- Lavoro in un ufficio.I work in an office.
- L'acqua bolle a 100 gradi.Water boils at 100 degrees.
Near Future
When a time expression makes the future clear, Italian often uses the presente instead of the future tense, just as English says "I'm leaving tomorrow".
- Domani vado al mare.Tomorrow I'm going to the beach.
- Ci vediamo stasera.See you tonight.
Da + Present
For something that started in the past and is still going on, Italian uses the presente with da. English uses "have been" or "have done" in these sentences, so the Italian present can feel surprising at first. Using the passato prossimo here is a common mistake.
presente+da+time
- Studio italiano da due anni.I've been studying Italian for two years.
- Abito a Roma da sempre.I've always lived in Rome.
- Da quanto tempo aspetti?How long have you been waiting?
- Ho studiato italiano da due anni.Studio italiano da due anni.
- Studio italiano per due anni.Studio italiano da due anni.
Practice
Domani ___ al mare.
L'acqua ___ a 100 gradi. (bollire)
How do you say "I'm working right now"?
___ italiano da due anni.
Studio italiano ___ due anni.
Da quanto tempo ___? (aspettare, tu)
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