Andare and Venire in Italian

In Brief

Andare means “to go,” while venire means “to come.” The basic contrast is direction: use andare for movement toward a destination viewed as “there,” and venire for movement toward the speaker, the listener, or a shared meeting point: Vado in ufficio, but Vieni da me? Both verbs are irregular, so their present-tense forms must be learned.

Overview

Andare and venire are essential Italian movement verbs. You use them to say where you are going, invite someone to join you, explain where you come from, and discuss everyday plans. They appear in questions such as Dove vai? (“Where are you going?”) and Vieni con noi? (“Are you coming with us?”).

This is an A1 topic, but it introduces two important features of Italian. First, the form of a verb changes according to its subject (the person or thing performing the action). Italian normally leaves out subject pronouns when the verb form makes the subject clear: vado already means “I go” or “I’m going.” Second, the Italian present tense can correspond to either the English simple present or present continuous. Context tells you whether vado means “I go” or “I’m going.”

The forms are only half the story. English “come” and “go” also depend on viewpoint, but the two languages do not always frame a journey in exactly the same way. When choosing the Italian verb, picture the destination: is it simply “there,” or is it where the speaker, listener, or group is or will be?

How It Works

Present tense forms

The infinitive (the dictionary form of a verb, equivalent to “to go” or “to come”) does not show who performs the action. In the present indicative (the ordinary verb form used for facts, routines, and current events), both verbs are irregular.

Person	andare	Meaning	venire	Meaning
io	vado	I go / I’m going	vengo	I come / I’m coming
tu	vai	you go / you’re going	vieni	you come / you’re coming
lui / lei / Lei	va	he/she goes; you go formally	viene	he/she comes; you come formally
noi	andiamo	we go / we’re going	veniamo	we come / we’re coming
voi	andate	you all go / you’re going	venite	you all come / you’re coming
loro	vanno	they go / they’re going	vengono	they come / they’re coming

Do not create forms by attaching regular endings to the infinitive. In particular, remember the doubled n in vanno and vengono. The forms andiamo, andate, veniamo, and venite look closer to their infinitives, but the whole paradigm is best learned as a set.

Choosing between andare and venire

Use andare when movement is toward a destination considered away from the current or relevant location:

• Vado al supermercato. — I’m going to the supermarket.
• Andiamo in centro. — We’re going downtown.
• Marco va a Napoli domani. — Marco is going to Naples tomorrow.

Use venire when movement is toward the speaker:

• Puoi venire a casa mia? — Can you come to my house?
• Giulia viene qui alle otto. — Giulia is coming here at eight.

Italian can also use venire toward the listener’s location, including a place where the listener will be. On the phone, Vengo da te alle nove naturally means “I’ll come to your place at nine.” A destination understood as a shared event or meeting point can also become the centre of viewpoint: Vieni alla festa? asks whether the listener will come to the event with the speaker or group.

Compare these questions:

• Vai alla festa? — Are you going to the party? The speaker presents it as a destination “there.”
• Vieni alla festa? — Are you coming to the party? The speaker treats the party as their own or a shared meeting point.

The physical journey may be identical. What changes is the speaker’s viewpoint.

The present tense: routines, current movement, and plans

Italian does not need a separate continuous form every time English uses “be + -ing.” The ordinary present works for routines and for movement happening now:

• Vado al lavoro in autobus. — I go to work by bus.
• Aspetta, vengo! — Wait, I’m coming!

It is also common for a definite near-future plan, especially with a time expression:

• Domani andiamo a Firenze. — Tomorrow we’re going to Florence.
• Stasera vengono a cena. — They’re coming to dinner tonight.

Prepositions after movement verbs

A preposition is a short linking word such as “to,” “in,” or “from.” Italian does not use one universal equivalent of English “to.” The destination determines the preposition.

Pattern	Main use	Example	Meaning
andare/venire a	cities, many specific places, activities	Vado a Roma.	I’m going to Rome.
andare/venire in	countries, regions, many larger areas; some places	Andiamo in Italia.	We’re going to Italy.
andare/venire da	a person, someone’s home or workplace	Vengo da Luca.	I’m coming to Luca’s place.
venire da	origin or starting point	Vengo da Londra.	I come from London.
andare/venire con	accompaniment	Vieni con me?	Are you coming with me?
andare a + infinitive	purpose: go to do something	Vado a mangiare.	I’m going to eat.

With a noun and a definite article, a often combines with the article: al cinema, alla stazione, allo stadio. Likewise, da can combine in forms such as dal medico (“to/from the doctor’s”) and dalla nonna (“to/from Grandma’s”). Many common place phrases must be learned individually: a casa, al lavoro, a scuola, in ufficio, in banca.

The phrase venire da has two common readings. In Vengo da Londra, it expresses origin. In Vengo da te, it describes movement to the listener’s place. Context and the person or place after da make the intended meaning clear.

Questions and negatives

Italian usually forms a yes/no question with normal word order and rising intonation; no equivalent of English “do” is added:

• Vai al lavoro? — Are you going to work?
• Vengono alla festa? — Are they coming to the party?

For information questions, add a question word such as dove (“where”), quando (“when”), come (“how”), or con chi (“with whom”): Da dove vieni? means “Where do you come from?” Put non directly before the conjugated verb to make it negative: Non vado; Non vengono con noi.

Examples in Context

Italian	English	Note
Vado al lavoro alle otto.	I go to work at eight.	A daily routine with andare.
Dove vai adesso?	Where are you going now?	The time word gives the present a continuous meaning.
Marta va in palestra tre volte alla settimana.	Marta goes to the gym three times a week.	In palestra is a common place phrase.
Andiamo a cena fuori stasera.	We’re going out for dinner tonight.	Present tense for a planned event.
I ragazzi vanno a scuola in autobus.	The children go to school by bus.	A scuola has no article.
Aspetta un momento, vengo!	Wait a moment, I’m coming!	Movement toward the speaker’s partner or group.
Da dove vieni?	Where do you come from?	Standard question about origin.
Vengo da Londra, ma vivo a Milano.	I come from London, but I live in Milan.	Da marks origin.
Vieni da me dopo il lavoro?	Are you coming to my place after work?	Da me means “to my place.”
Paolo viene in ufficio domani.	Paolo is coming to the office tomorrow.	The office is the relevant meeting point.
Veniamo con voi al concerto.	We’re coming with you to the concert.	Con voi presents movement with the listener’s group.
Vengono alla festa sabato?	Are they coming to the party on Saturday?	A shared event is the point of arrival.
Non vado al cinema; resto a casa.	I’m not going to the cinema; I’m staying home.	Non comes before vado.
Vai a comprare il pane?	Are you going to buy bread?	A + infinitive expresses purpose.

Common Mistakes

Using a regular form for an irregular verb

• Wrong: Io ando al lavoro.
• Right: Io vado al lavoro.
• Why: The first-person singular of andare is vado, not a form built regularly from and-.

Using a singular form with loro

• Wrong: Loro va a casa. / Loro viene con noi.
• Right: Loro vanno a casa. / Loro vengono con noi.
• Why: Loro requires the third-person plural form. Notice the double n in vanno and the distinct ending of vengono.

Translating every English “to” as a

• Wrong: Vado a Italia.
• Right: Vado in Italia.
• Why: Countries normally take in, while cities normally take a: in Italia but a Roma.

Using a destination preposition before a person

• Wrong: Vado a Marco.
• Right: Vado da Marco.
• Why: Use da for movement to a person, their home, or their professional premises: da Marco, dalla nonna, dal dentista.

Choosing venire without a “here” viewpoint

• Wrong: Domani vengo al museo when neither speaker nor listener will be there and the museum is simply a destination.
• Right: Domani vado al museo.
• Why: Use andare for a neutral destination. Use venire if the destination is where the speaker or listener is or will be, or is treated as a shared meeting point.

Adding an English-style auxiliary to questions

• Wrong: Fai tu vai a scuola?
• Right: Vai a scuola?
• Why: Italian does not insert an equivalent of “do” to form this question. The verb and intonation are enough.

Usage Notes

Italian often omits io, tu, and the other subject pronouns because vado, vai, viene, and the remaining forms already identify the grammatical person. State the pronoun for contrast or emphasis: Io vado in treno, ma loro vanno in macchina (“I’m going by train, but they’re going by car”).

English speakers should pay particular attention to invitations. Both Vai alla festa? and Vieni alla festa? are grammatical, but they frame the event differently. Vieni? often implies “join me/us” and can therefore sound more inviting. Vai? asks about the listener’s trip to an event viewed from outside.

For immediate reassurance, Vengo! is the natural response when moving toward the person calling you. In English, “I’m coming” works similarly. Italian also commonly uses andare with transport: andare in treno, in macchina, in autobus, but andare a piedi (“to go on foot”).

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

You do not need to master the following points at A1, but they explain forms and meanings you will meet later.

In compound past tenses, both verbs normally use essere (“to be”) as the auxiliary verb (the helping verb): sono andato/a (“I went”) and sono venuto/a (“I came”). The past participle (the form andato or venuto used in this construction) agrees with the subject in gender and number: Maria è andata, Luca è venuto, le ragazze sono venute.

Their command forms are frequent. Informal singular vai! or shortened va’! means “go!”, while vieni! means “come!” The apostrophe in va’ marks the shortened form; it is not the accented va sometimes written incorrectly as và. The first-person plural forms can suggest doing something together: Andiamo! (“Let’s go!”) and Veniamo anche noi (“We’ll come too”).

Both verbs extend beyond literal movement:

• Come va? — How’s it going?
• Questo vestito ti va bene. — This dress fits/suits you.
• Il piano non va. — The plan does not work.
• Mi viene un’idea. — An idea comes to me.
• La torta è venuta bene. — The cake turned out well.
• Mi viene da ridere. — I feel like laughing / It makes me want to laugh.

These expressions should be learned as complete patterns rather than derived from the beginner direction rule. You will also encounter related verbs with attached particles, especially andarsene (“to leave/go away”) and venirne fuori (“to emerge from it” or “to get out of it”). They involve pronouns and deserve separate study after the basic forms are secure.

Practice Tips

1. Learn the forms in contrasting pairs. Say vado–vengo, vai–vieni, va–viene, andiamo–veniamo, andate–venite, vanno–vengono. Pairing the same person makes differences easier to hear.
2. Draw a viewpoint map. Mark “here,” “your place,” and a neutral destination. Make one sentence with andare and one with venire for each route: Vado al bar versus Vieni al bar con noi?
3. Build preposition chunks. Memorise whole phrases rather than isolated rules: andare a casa, andare al lavoro, andare in Italia, venire da Roma, venire da me. Then change the subject and time expression without changing the chunk.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Regular -ARE Verbs — provides the basic idea of present-tense persons and endings, against which these irregular forms stand out.