leggevano

Leggevano is the third-person plural imperfect indicative form of the Italian verb leggere, meaning “they were reading” or “they used to read” depending on context. As an imperfect form, it is often used to describe ongoing past actions, background situations, or habitual past activities in narration.

Formation and etymology: Leggere belongs to the -ere class of Italian verbs. In the imperfect, the stem takes an -ev- insertion before the standard endings, producing leggev- plus the plural ending -ano. The double g helps preserve the hard g sound before the following vowel. Thus leggevano literally corresponds to the stem leggev- with the ordinary imperfect ending for third-person plural.

Usage: Leggevano is employed to describe actions in the past that were not completed at a definite moment, or that occurred repeatedly or simultaneously with other actions. It is common in storytelling, descriptive passages, and conversations about past routines. It contrasts with passato prossimo forms like hanno letto, which indicate completed actions.

Examples:

- Mentre leggevano, la lampada tremolava. (While they were reading, the lamp flickered.)

- Quando erano giovani, leggevano molto. (When they were young, they used to read a lot.)

Related forms: Leggere’s imperfect paradigm includes leggevo, leggevi, leggeva, leggevamo, leggevate, leggevano. The imperfect is often contrasted with the passato prossimo, which signals completed past actions rather than ongoing or habitual ones.