Salire is the verb Italians use for going up — climbing stairs, riding an elevator up, mounting a horse, boarding a train, bus, or plane, ascending in rank, and metaphorically rising in price, temperature, or volume. It is the natural opposite of scendere (to go down), and the two together carry an enormous amount of everyday motion vocabulary. Salgo in macchina e scendo davanti al supermercato. ("I get in the car and get out in front of the supermarket.")
The paradigm is irregular in only one place — the -g- insertion in the 1sg, 3pl present indicative, and throughout the present subjunctive (salgo, salgono, salga, salgano). Everywhere else the verb behaves as a regular -ire verb on the sal- stem. What makes salire genuinely interesting for learners is its auxiliary split: it takes essere when used intransitively (the most common case) and avere when used transitively (when it has a direct object).
Indicativo presente
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | salgo |
| tu | sali |
| lui / lei / Lei | sale |
| noi | saliamo |
| voi | salite |
| loro | salgono |
The -g- insertion appears only in the 1sg salgo and 3pl salgono — exactly the two forms whose ending begins with -o. Everywhere else the stem is plain sal- and the verb takes the standard -ire endings (sali, sale, saliamo, salite). There is no vowel shift, no double consonant, and no other irregularity in this paradigm — making salire the simplest of the major -g- verbs.
Salgo subito, sto solo prendendo le chiavi.
I'll be right up, I'm just grabbing the keys.
A che ora sali in ufficio di solito?
What time do you usually get up to the office?
A novembre la temperatura non sale mai sopra i quindici gradi.
In November the temperature never climbs above fifteen degrees.
Saliamo a piedi, l'ascensore è rotto.
Let's take the stairs, the elevator is broken.
I prezzi salgono di anno in anno.
Prices go up year after year.
Imperfetto
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | salivo |
| tu | salivi |
| lui / lei / Lei | saliva |
| noi | salivamo |
| voi | salivate |
| loro | salivano |
Fully regular on the sal- stem with the standard -ire imperfect endings. Used for habitual past climbing or boarding (ogni mattina salivo sull'autobus delle sette) or for descriptive past states (il fumo saliva lentamente verso il soffitto).
Da bambini salivamo sempre sull'albero in giardino.
As kids we used to climb the tree in the garden all the time.
Il sole saliva piano dietro le montagne.
The sun was rising slowly behind the mountains.
Passato remoto
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | salii |
| tu | salisti |
| lui / lei / Lei | salì |
| noi | salimmo |
| voi | saliste |
| loro | salirono |
Completely regular — none of the present-tense irregularities carry over here. The 3sg salì carries a grave accent on the final -ì to mark stress, distinguishing it from the present sale. Note the double i in salii (1sg), which is just the regular ending -ii added to the stem sal-.
Salimmo in cima alla collina prima del tramonto.
We climbed to the top of the hill before sunset.
L'astronauta salì sulla scaletta del razzo davanti alle telecamere di tutto il mondo.
The astronaut climbed up the rocket ladder in front of cameras from all over the world.
Futuro semplice
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | salirò |
| tu | salirai |
| lui / lei / Lei | salirà |
| noi | saliremo |
| voi | salirete |
| loro | saliranno |
Regular future on the sali- stem — no contracted -rr- stem here. (Compare to tenere → terrò and rimanere → rimarrò, where the future stem contracts.) The grave accent on salirò / salirà marks the stressed final vowel.
Domani salirò a Bolzano per il convegno.
Tomorrow I'll head up to Bolzano for the conference.
L'inflazione salirà ancora nei prossimi mesi, secondo gli economisti.
Inflation will rise further in the coming months, according to economists.
Condizionale presente
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| io | salirei |
| tu | saliresti |
| lui / lei / Lei | salirebbe |
| noi | saliremmo |
| voi | salireste |
| loro | salirebbero |
Regular conditional on the sali- stem. Watch the saliremo (future) vs saliremmo (conditional) double-m trap.
Salirei volentieri a piedi, ma con queste scarpe non ce la faccio.
I'd happily walk up, but I can't make it in these shoes.
Congiuntivo presente
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| (che) io | salga |
| (che) tu | salga |
| (che) lui / lei | salga |
| (che) noi | saliamo |
| (che) voi | saliate |
| (che) loro | salgano |
Built from the 1sg present stem salg- plus the regular -ire subjunctive endings. The three singular forms collapse into salga, while noi and voi revert to the plain sal- stem.
Voglio che tu salga prima di me, così controlli che la luce sia spenta.
I want you to go up before me, so you can check that the light is off.
È meglio che salgano in due, le valigie sono pesanti.
It's better if two of them go up — the suitcases are heavy.
Congiuntivo imperfetto
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| (che) io | salissi |
| (che) tu | salissi |
| (che) lui / lei | salisse |
| (che) noi | salissimo |
| (che) voi | saliste |
| (che) loro | salissero |
Regular on the sali- stem. Used in past-tense subjunctive contexts (Volevo che salissi prima di me) and in the protasis of irreal conditionals paired with the conditional in the apodosis (Se salissimo a piedi, arriveremmo più tardi).
Volevo che salissi tu prima, ma sei rimasto giù a chiacchierare.
I wanted you to go up first, but you stayed downstairs chatting.
Se salissimo a piedi fino in cima, ci metteremmo almeno due ore.
If we walked up to the top, it would take us at least two hours.
Imperativo
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | sali |
| Lei (formal) | salga |
| noi | saliamo |
| voi | salite |
| loro (formal pl.) | salgano |
The 2sg sali is the same as the present indicative — typical for -ire verbs. The polite Lei form salga is what bus drivers, conductors, and hotel staff will say to you constantly: Salga pure! ("Please get on / come up!").
Sali, ti accompagno io a casa.
Get in, I'll drive you home.
Salga al terzo piano, signora — l'ufficio è in fondo al corridoio.
Please go up to the third floor, ma'am — the office is at the end of the hallway.
Forme non finite
| Form | Italian |
|---|---|
| Infinito presente | salire |
| Infinito passato | essere salito/a/i/e (intr.) / aver salito (tr.) |
| Gerundio presente | salendo |
| Gerundio passato | essendo salito/a/i/e / avendo salito |
| Participio passato | salito/a/i/e |
The participle salito is regular. Whether it agrees with the subject (with essere) or with a preceding direct-object pronoun (with avere) depends on the auxiliary chosen — see the next section.
The auxiliary split: essere vs avere
This is the key feature of salire that English speakers must internalise. Italian distinguishes between:
- Intransitive use (no direct object, just a destination or a movement): auxiliary is essere, participle agrees with subject.
- Transitive use (a direct object — typically le scale "the stairs"): auxiliary is avere, participle agrees with a preceding direct-object pronoun.
| Use | Example | Auxiliary |
|---|---|---|
| Intransitive: board / get on | Sono salito sul treno | essere |
| Intransitive: go up | Maria è salita in camera sua | essere |
| Intransitive: rise (price/temp) | I prezzi sono saliti | essere |
| Transitive: climb (the stairs) | Ho salito le scale di corsa | avere |
| Transitive: climb (a mountain) | Abbiamo salito la montagna | avere |
The transitive use is overwhelmingly limited to salire le scale ("climb the stairs") and a few set phrases like salire la montagna in elevated registers. In casual speech, even native speakers often default to Sono salito su per le scale (intransitive). But the contrast is real and tested in grammar exams.
Sono salita sull'autobus alla terza fermata.
I (female) got on the bus at the third stop.
Ho salito le scale di corsa perché ero in ritardo.
I ran up the stairs because I was late.
Le scale? Le ho salite due volte stamattina.
The stairs? I went up them twice this morning.
I costi della benzina sono saliti del venti per cento in tre mesi.
Gas prices have risen by twenty percent in three months.
Compound tenses (intransitive, with essere)
| Tense | Form (1sg masc.) | Form (1sg fem.) |
|---|---|---|
| Passato prossimo | sono salito | sono salita |
| Trapassato prossimo | ero salito | ero salita |
| Futuro anteriore | sarò salito | sarò salita |
| Condizionale passato | sarei salito | sarei salita |
| Congiuntivo passato | sia salito | sia salita |
| Congiuntivo trapassato | fossi salito | fossi salita |
Salire su, salire al potere, salire alle stelle: prepositions and idioms
Salire combines with several prepositions, each shifting the meaning slightly:
- salire su (+ article) — to get on, get in (a vehicle, a ladder, an elevated surface). Sono salito sul treno / sull'autobus / sulla bici.
- salire in — to go up to, often without article for rooms in your own home. Salgo in camera mia.
- salire a — to ascend to (a position, a place). È salito al potere nel 1922.
- salire da — to come up from (a lower place or level).
Common idioms:
- salire al potere — to come to power (politically).
- salire alle stelle — to skyrocket. I prezzi sono saliti alle stelle.
- salire in cattedra — to lecture (in a condescending way). Ogni volta sale in cattedra a spiegarci come dovremmo vivere.
- salire di grado — to be promoted (military / corporate).
- far salire la pressione — to make blood pressure rise (literally or figuratively, of stress).
Mussolini salì al potere nel 1922.
Mussolini came to power in 1922.
Con questa storia mi è salita la pressione alle stelle.
This whole business has sent my blood pressure through the roof.
Common mistakes
❌ Io salo le scale.
Incorrect — the 1sg requires the -g- insertion.
✅ Io salgo le scale.
Correct — salgo, with -g-.
❌ Ho salito sul treno alle nove.
Incorrect — boarding a vehicle is intransitive (with su), so it takes essere.
✅ Sono salito sul treno alle nove.
Correct — sono salito, intransitive use.
❌ Sono salito le scale.
Incorrect — when 'le scale' is the direct object, the verb is transitive and takes avere.
✅ Ho salito le scale.
Correct — ho salito with avere when the stairs are the direct object.
❌ Maria è salito in camera.
Incorrect — with essere, the participle must agree with the feminine subject.
✅ Maria è salita in camera.
Correct — salita agrees with feminine singular Maria.
❌ Penso che lui sale subito.
Incorrect — penso che triggers the subjunctive.
✅ Penso che lui salga subito.
Correct — salga is the congiuntivo presente.
Key takeaways
One irregularity, repeated in two places: the -g- insertion in 1sg/3pl present (salgo, salgono) and throughout the present subjunctive (salga, salgano). Everywhere else the verb is regular on the sal- / sali- stem.
The auxiliary split is the central learning point: essere for intransitive uses (which dominate everyday speech), avere for transitive uses (mainly salire le scale). When in doubt, ask whether there is a direct object — if not, use essere.
Salire combines heavily with prepositions (su, in, a, da). The collocations salire sul treno, salire al potere, salire alle stelle should be drilled as units.
The opposite is scendere (to go down) — these two verbs together carry a huge slice of motion vocabulary, and they share the same auxiliary-split logic.
Pair this verb with scendere and review the rules for choosing between essere and avere to lock in why transitive direct objects flip the auxiliary.
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Open the Italian course →Related Topics
- Scendere: Full ConjugationA2 — Complete paradigm of scendere (to go down, get off) — the natural opposite of salire, with the diagnostic -si/-so passato remoto and participle (scesi/sceso) and an auxiliary that flips between essere and avere depending on transitivity.
- Essere: Full ConjugationA1 — Complete paradigm of essere (to be) across every tense and mood — the most irregular and one of the two most-used verbs in Italian.
- Avere: Full ConjugationA1 — Complete paradigm of avere (to have) across every tense and mood — the most-used verb in Italian and the auxiliary for the majority of compound tenses.