The Verb “Piacere” in Italian: A Simple Guide for Beginners

Piacere is one of the first verbs my students want to use, because it’s how you talk about food, music, places and people. It’s also the one that confuses them most: in English you like something, while in Italian something is pleasing to you. Once that clicks, everything else falls into place.

How to Conjugate Piacere

As you might already know, piacere (and a few other verbs that I will list at the end of this post) doesn’t follow a regular conjugation pattern, and it’s used differently from its English equivalent, to like.

In fact, the Italian translation for I LIKE is not “io piaccio,” but “mi piace” or “mi piacciono.”

Piacere is almost always used in the 3rd person singular and plural (piace, piacciono). You’ll see the exception, mi piaci, further down. The person who likes something (or someone) is denoted by an indirect object pronoun (mi, ti, gli/le, ci, vi, gli) and not by the regular subject pronouns (io, tu, lui, etc.).

So the conjugation of piacere in the present tense looks like this:

What is the difference between piace and piacciono?

Piace is used when the thing or person we like is a singular entity or an action (an infinitive verb).

• Mi piace Marco → I like Marco
• Gli piace la pasta → He likes pasta
• Ti piace questo dolce? → Do you like this dessert?
• Ci piace passeggiare nei boschi → We like to walk in the woods

Piacciono is used when the thing or person we like is a plural entity:

• Ti piacciono questi fiori? → Do you like these flowers?
• Non ci piacciono questi mobili → We don’t like this furniture

❌ Avoid this very common mistake:

Piacere is always conjugated using indirect object pronouns, which are different from other pronouns, such as reflexive ones. Sometimes, students mix them up and use ‘si piace‘ in place of ‘gli’ or ‘le piace,’ which is incorrect.

Italian vs. English

Literally, mi piace means “something is pleasing to me”. The thing you like is the subject of the sentence, and you are the person it pleases:

So, saying “Mi piace la cucina indiana” is literally translated as “Indian food is pleasurable/pleasant for me.” The verb piacere is always used in this way.

When piacere is followed by a verb, as in “I like cooking,” the verb that follows mi piace must always be in the infinitive form:

Why do you use ‘A’ before piacere, sometimes?

When the people who like something are explicitly mentioned, the noun must be preceded by the preposition ‘a’:

This structure follows the logical construction of “piacere” in Italian, where the thing being liked is actually the subject of the sentence, and the person who likes it is the indirect object. Let me expand on this:

When to Use ‘A’ Before Piacere

You need the preposition a when explicitly mentioning the person who likes something.

When ‘A’ is Not Needed

If you use pronouns instead of explicitly mentioning the person, you don’t need a:

Conjugating Piacere in the Past Tense (Passato Prossimo)

Just like in the present tense, piacere follows a different conjugation pattern with the passato prossimo (past tense).

As you can see from the list above, the past tense combines three elements: the indirect pronouns + the auxiliary essere + the past participle (piaciuto/a/i/e).

What’s the difference between:

• Mi è piaciuto il film → I liked the film
• Mi sono piaciuti i negozi → I liked the shops

In the first sentence, the object that is “pleasurable” is a singular entity (un film/a movie), whereas in the second sentence, the thing that is “pleasurable” is a plural entity (i negozi/the shops).

The auxiliary and the past participles always agree with the gender and number of the thing that is pleasant. So, if the entity being liked (the object) is a feminine noun, you will need to make sure that the participle is in agreement with the subject, for example:

• Mi è piaciuta la pasta → I liked the pasta
• Mi sono piaciute le tue lezioni → I liked your classes

It’s important to note that piacere is always used in the 3rd person singular or plural, no matter what tense is being used.

Piacere in other tenses

Piacere with the imperfetto (I used to like)

Example: 

• Quando ero piccola mi piaceva passare le vacanze dai miei nonni → When I was little I liked to spend my vacations at my grandparents.

Piacere in the future tense (I will like)

Example:

• Domani inizio un nuovo lavoro, ma non so se mi piacerà  → Tomorrow I’ll start a new job, but I don’t know if I’ll like it 

Piacere with the present conditional (I would like, I would love)

Example:

• Mi piacerebbe comprare una casa a Capri → I’d like to buy a house in Capri
• Non ti piacerebbe venire con noi domani? → Wouldn’t you like to join us tomorrow?

Piacere in the present subjunctive (that I like)

Examples:

• Spero che ti piaccia → I hope you like it 
• Speriamo che gli piaccia → We hope they like it

Mi piaci: when piacere is about people

Piacere can also be used in the 1st and 2nd person, usually when we talk about people. In this case the person who is liked becomes the subject of the sentence.

• Mi piaci. → I like you.
• Piaci a Marco. → Marco likes you.
• Non piaccio a tua madre. → Your mother doesn’t like me.
• Ci piacete molto! → We really like you all!

Be careful: mi piaci, said to a person, usually means you find them attractive. To say you like someone as a friend, Italians often say mi sei simpatico or mi sei simpatica.

How to answer: anche a me, neanche a me

When a friend says Mi piace il gelato!, don’t answer anch’io. Since piacere works with indirect pronouns, the reply needs one too:

• Mi piace il gelato. → Anche a me! (Me too!)
• Non mi piace il caffè americano. → Neanche a me! (Me neither!)
• Ti piace Roma? → Sì, a me piace moltissimo. E a te?

I explain these little replies in my post about anche and neanche.

Other verbs similar to piacere

Piacere is not the only verb that follows this unique conjugation pattern (also known as impersonal conjugation). The verbs listed below are used and conjugated in the same way as piacere.

My advice is to first learn how to use piacere and then apply the same pattern to other verbs.

• Servire → to need (something)
• Bastare → to be enough
• Mancare  → to miss 
• Interessare → to be interested 

Exercises with piacere: present and past tense:

See piacere in real stories

Tables help, but piacere really sticks when you meet it again and again in a story. It comes up all the time in my graded readers, because my characters, just like real people, talk about food, places and each other. If you’re a beginner, start with one of these:

Due Amiche e un Album di Fotografie
Level A1

Two friends, an old photo album and lots of everyday Italian.

Le Avventure di Paul a Roma
Level A1/A2

Paul moves to Rome and discovers the city one day at a time.

Magia a Venezia
Level A1/A2

A short story set in Venice, written for beginners.

Incontri in Sicilia
Level A2

Stories set in Sicily, my home island, for when you’re ready for A2.