Già, ancora, appena: Italian adverbs of time

What they mean

They are small words, but they change the meaning of the sentence: they tell you whether an action is finished, still going on or hasn’t started yet.

Ancora has three meanings: “still” (dormi ancora? = are you still sleeping?), “more” (ancora un caffè = another coffee) and “again” (ancora tu? = you again?). The context tells you which one.

The pairs: già ↔ non ancora, ancora ↔ non più

A question with già gets the answer “no” with non… ancora, like “already” → “not yet”. A question with ancora gets the answer “no” with non… più, like “still” → “not any more”.

The negative is double: non goes before the verb and ancora, più or mai after it. In Italian two negatives don’t cancel each other out: non ho mai visto means “I have never seen”.

Where they go

In the passato prossimo these adverbs go between the auxiliary and the participle, just like in English (“I have already eaten”). Non, instead, goes before the auxiliary.

Appena has two uses. With the passato prossimo it means “just”: sono appena arrivato (I have just arrived). At the start of a sentence it means “as soon as”: appena arrivo, ti chiamo (as soon as I arrive, I’ll call you).

Don’t use appena with a precise time: ho mangiato tre ore fa, not ho appena mangiato tre ore fa. Appena already means “a moment ago”.

Common mistakes

Exercises with instant feedback

30 sentences in three parts. Write only what is missing: the answer is checked as you type.

Part 1 · Which word?

Write già, ancora, appena, più or mai.

Part 2 · Answer

Complete the answer with the missing word.

Part 3 · Put them in order

Write the words in brackets in the right order.

Use it in conversation