dormivo

Dormivo is the first-person singular imperfect indicative form of the Italian verb dormire, meaning to sleep. It describes an ongoing or habitual action in the past.

It originates from Latin dormire, and in Italian follows the regular imperfect endings of -ire verbs: -ivo, -ivi, -iva, -ivamo, -ivate, -ivano. The stress falls on the syllable -mi-.

In practice, dormivo is used to express habitual actions in the past or to set a scene. Examples: "Quando ero bambino, dormivo spesso fino a mezzogiorno." "Ieri sera dormivo mentre il telefono suonava."

In contrast with passato prossimo "ho dormito," which marks a completed action, dormivo can also be distinguished from "stavo dormendo" (the imperfect of stare + gerund) by focusing on duration or habit rather than a momentary action.

Related topics include dormire (to sleep), the imperfect (imperfetto) verb tense in Italian, and general Italian grammar.