The Italian Verb Provare (To Attempt, To Try, To Prove)- A Complete Guide On Meaning, Usage and Conjugation

Written by Federica  in Italian language

The meaning of provare

The verb provare in Italian means, primarily, to try, and can be used in many different ways as to attempt, to try something out, to test, to try on (e.g. clothes), to taste, to prove, to put to the test, to feel (of a feeling or sensation) and finally, in a more limited sense, to rehearse.

What conjugation does provare belong to?

Provare belongs to the first Italian conjugation. The infinitive form ends in -are (provare), the participle form ends in -ato (provato) and the gerund ends in -ando (provando).

Is provare regular or irregular?

Provare is a regular verb, meaning that its verb endings vary throughout the conjugation consistently with standard regular verb endings. So, if you know how to conjugate regular first-conjugation Italian verbs, you will also be able to conjugate provare.

Does provare use an essere or avere auxiliary?

Italian compound tenses such as the present perfect (passato prossimo) require the main verb to be preceded by an auxiliary, essere or avere. 

In compound tenses, provare takes the avere auxiliary (for example ho provato a telefonare – I tried to phone).

When provare means to try on, it can also be used reflexively (provarsi). Like other Italian verbs, when used reflexively, provare wants an essere auxiliary (for example, mi sono provata la maglietta nuova – I tried on the new t-shirt).

Provare can be both a transitive verb, meaning that it takes an object (for example, sto provando una nuova marca di te’ – I’m trying a new brand of tea) and an intransitive verb, which makes sense on its own (for example, proviamo – let’s try).

Uses of provare

Provare is a very versatile verb which can have many meanings. Here are the ways in which you can use it:

• Proviamo! – Let’s try
• Hai provato a cambiare la routine? – have you tried changing the routine?
• Deve provare a mangiare meglio – he/ she must try to eat better
• Hai provato la nuova bicicletta? – have you tried out the new bike?
• Prova questo gusto di gelato – taste this ice-cream flavour

• Posso provartelo – I can prove it to you
• Mi sono provata il vestito ed era troppo stretto – I tried the dress on and it was too tight
• Quando è finalmente arrivata a casa era molto provata – when she finally got home she was very worn out
• Nella chiesa c’è il coro che sta provando i canti per la domenica – the choir are in the church rehearsing the songs for Sunday
• Hanno provato molto dolore quando si sono trasferiti lontani dai genitori – they suffered a lot of pain when they moved far away from their parents

Provare is often followed by the preposition a + a verb in the infinitive, to say what you are trying. For example:

• Proviamo ad accorciarlo di due centimetri – let’s try to shorten it by two centimetres
• Provo a vedere se sono tornati – I’ll try to see if they’re back

Italian set phrases with provare

One set way to use provare in Italian is followed by a -ci (provarci) to mean to try it on:

• Negli anni dell’ adolescenza ci provava con tutte – in his teenage years he used to try it on with everyone

Provarci also means simply to try it, so use context to guide you in identifying the correct meaning:

• Se proprio vuoi, possiamo provarci – if you really want to, we can try (it)

Synonyms of provare

The verb provare has different synonyms, depending on its original meaning.

• When provare means to try/ to attempt, its closest synonym is tentare
• When provare means to try out, its closest synonym is testare
• When provare means to feel, its closest synonym is sentire
• When provare means to prove, you can use dimostrare as a closely-related alternative

Nouns related to provare

A popular noun related to provare is prova (a test/ a go). For example you could say:

• Facciamo una prova – let’s give it a go (literally “let’s do a go”)

The word provino, also related to prova (and found in the provare subjunctive conjugation) is an audition.

• Ha fatto molti provini, ma non ne ha vinto neanche uno – he/ she did many audition but didn’t win a single one

The complete conjugation of provare

In the table below you can see the complete conjugation of provare in all tenses and moods.

Verb Tense	IO	TU	LUI/ LEI	NOI	VOI	LORO
Present indicative	provo	provi	prova	proviamo	provate	provano
Present perfect indicative	ho provato	hai provato	ha provato	abbiamo provato	avete provato	hanno provato
Imperfect indicative	provavo	provavi	provava	provavamo	provavate	provavano
Past perfect indicative	avevo provato	avevi provato	aveva provato	avevamo provato	avevate provato	avevano provato
Remote past indicative	provai	provasti	provò	provammo	provaste	provarono
Preterite perfect indicative	ebbi provato	avesti provato	ebbe provato	avemmo provato	aveste provato	ebbero provato
Simple future indicative	proverò	proverai	proverà	proveremo	proverete	proveranno
Future perfect indicative	avrò provato	avrai provato	avrà provato	avremo provato	avrete provato	avranno provato
Present conditional	proverei	proveresti	proverebbe	proveremmo	provereste	proverebbero
Past perfect conditional	avrei provato	avresti provato	avrebbe provato	avremmo provato	avreste provato	avrebbero provato
Imperative		prova		proviamo	provate
Present gerund	provando	provando	provando	provando	provando	provando
Past gerund	avendo provato	avendo provato	avendo provato	avendo provato	avendo provato	avendo provato
Present subjunctive	provi	provi	provi	proviamo	proviate	provino
Present perfect subjunctive	abbia provato	abbia provato	abbia provato	abbiamo provato	abbiate provato	abbiano provato
Imperfect subjunctive	provassi	provassi	provasse	provassimo	provaste	provassero
Past perfect subjunctive	avessi provato	avessi provato	avesse provato	avessimo provato	aveste provato	avessero provato