| Let's look at the sentence pattern. |
| But first, let's review how to form the imperfetto tense. To do this, take the stem of the verb and add the appropriate imperfect endings. |
| For -are verbs like andare (to go): |
| io andavo — I used to go |
| tu andavi — you used to go (singular) |
| lui / lei andava — he/she used to go |
| noi andavamo — we used to go |
| voi andavate — you used to go (plural) |
| loro andavano — they used to go |
| Ok, now onto the pattern. |
| Do you remember how the character said, |
| "I used to go to the gym every day." |
| Andavo tutti i giorni in palestra. |
| Andavo tutti i giorni in palestra. |
| This sentence follows the pattern here |
| verb in imperfetto + (optional time phrase) |
| In Italian, the imperfetto tense is used to describe ongoing actions in the past, habits, or situations that were true over a period of time. It's similar to saying "used to" or "was doing" in English. |
| Here's how the line from the dialogue uses the pattern. |
| Andavo tutti i giorni in palestra. |
| In this sentence: |
| Andavo is the first-person singular form of andare in the imperfetto. It combines the stem and- with the ending -avo, which marks the subject as "I" and the action as habitual in the past. |
| The phrase tutti i giorni means "every day," reinforcing the idea of repetition or routine. |
| Finally, in palestra means "to the gym." |
| This sentence follows the pattern of the verb in imperfetto + (optional time phrase), used to describe past habits or repeated actions. |
| Now, you can use this structure to describe past habits and repeated actions when you're speaking in Italian! |
| Now let's look at some speaking examples. |
| Trenta anni fa, avevo quattordici anni. |
| "Thirty years ago, I was fourteen years old." |
| Can you see how the pattern applies here? |
| Let's break it down: |
| Avevo is the first-person singular of avere in the imperfetto. It means "I had," but in this context, it translates as "I was" when referring to age. |
| Quattordici anni means "fourteen years." |
| This shows how avere is used to express age in Italian, and how the imperfetto gives the sense of a past state. |
| Here's another example |
| Da piccola, andavo a scuola negli Stati Uniti. |
| "When I was little, I used to go to school in the United States." |
| Da piccola, andavo a scuola negli Stati Uniti. |
| "When I was little, I used to go to school in the United States." |
| Let's try one more, |
| Quando ero una studentessa, avevo molti amici. |
| "When I was a student, I had many friends." |
| Quando ero una studentessa, avevo molti amici. |
| "When I was a student, I had many friends." |
| Another one. |
| Da giovane non andavo mai al cinema. |
| "When I was young, I never went to the cinema." |
| Da giovane non andavo mai al cinema. |
| "When I was young, I never went to the cinema." |
| One last example. |
| Facevo nuoto ogni estate. |
| "I used to swim every summer." |
| Facevo nuoto ogni estate. |
| "I used to swim every summer." |
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