coniugare

Coniugare is an Italian verb meaning to conjugate, especially verbs, and more broadly to join or fuse elements in a figurative sense. It is a transitive verb of the first conjugation, ending in -are.

Etymology: The word comes from Latin coniugare, formed from con- “together” and iugare “to yoke,” itself from iugum “yoke.” The sense of joining or pairing underlies both the grammatical and figurative uses.

Conjugation: Coniugare is a regular -are verb. In the present indicative, the forms are: io coniugo, tu coniughi, lui/lei coniuga, noi coniughiamo, voi coniugate, loro coniugano. It follows the standard patterns of the first conjugation in other tenses as well: imperfect coniugavo, coniugavi, coniugava, coniugavamo, coniugavate, coniugavano; future coniugherò, coniugherai, coniugherà, coniugheremo, coniugherete, coniugheranno. The passato prossimo uses avere as auxiliary: ho coniugato.

Usage: In grammar and linguistics, coniugare is used to describe forming the various verb forms. More broadly, the verb can also mean to combine or reconcile different elements, though this sense is more metaphorical and less frequent in everyday speech.

See also: coniugazione (conjugation), verbi italiani (Italian verbs), grammatica italiana.