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Passato prossimo or imperfetto? The two Italian past tenses compared
When to use the compound past versus the imperfect tense.
In Italian: Passato Prossimo vs Imperfetto
Both come out as a simple past in English, which is exactly why the choice is hard. The passato prossimo reports a finished event: ieri ho letto un libro. The imperfetto describes a background, a habit or a state with no clear edges: da bambino leggevo molto.
In a single sentence they cooperate — the imperfetto sets the scene and the passato prossimo interrupts it: mentre leggevo, è suonato il telefono.
Age, weather, time of day, feelings and physical description in the past are almost always imperfetto: erano le otto, faceva freddo, ero stanco.
Da bambino, io ___ sempre al mare in estate.
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