attendevi

Attendevi is the second-person singular imperfect indicative form of the Italian verb attendere, meaning to wait or to attend to something. As a verb form, it is used to describe an ongoing or habitual action in the past addressed to “you.”

Origin and grammar: Attendere comes from Latin attendere, and attendevi is formed from the stem attend- plus the imperfect ending for tu. The imperfect tense expresses duration or repetition in the past, so attendevi conveys that you were waiting or you used to wait over a period of time.

Usage and nuances: In contemporary Italian, aspettare is more commonly used in everyday speech to express waiting. Attendere and its forms, including attendevi, are still found in formal writing, literature, and contexts that prefer a more classical or precise register. The form emphasizes the ongoing nature of the past action rather than a single completed moment.

Example contexts: Tu attendevi l’arrivo del treno ogni sera. Quando ti ho chiamato, tu attendevi pazientemente una risposta. In literary or historical texts, attendevi may carry a slightly more formal or ceremonious tone than aspettavi.

See also: Attendere and aspettare, the two verbs most closely associated with waiting in Italian, with attendere often noted for more formal or literary usage. See also Italian verb conjugation guides for the imperfect tense of -ere verbs.