incontrai

Incontrai is the first-person singular form of the Italian passato remoto tense of the verb incontrare, which means to meet or encounter. As a past-tense form, it is used to describe a completed action of meeting someone or something in narrative or formal writing.

Conjugation: io incontrai; tu incontrasti; lui/lei incontrò; noi incontrammo; voi incontraste; loro incontrarono. The form io incontrai represents the simple past tense, distinct from other tenses of incontrare such as incontravo (imperfect) and ho incontrato (present perfect).

Usage: The passato remoto, including incontrai, is primarily found in written Italian, especially in literature, historical writing, and formal narration. In everyday spoken Italian, the passato prossimo (e.g., ho incontrato) is generally used instead of the passato remoto. Some regional dialects or certain literary styles may retain or echo passato remoto forms in speech, but this is not standard in contemporary casual conversation.

Examples: In a novel, one might read: "Nel racconto, io incontrai un vecchio amico al mercato." Another example: "Durante il viaggio, incontrai diverse persone interessanti." In ordinary conversation, these ideas would usually be expressed with "ho incontrato" rather than "incontrai."