scendevi

Scendevi is the second-person singular imperfect indicative form of the Italian verb scendere, meaning to descend or to go down. The imperfect tense expresses an ongoing action in the past or a habitual past action, so scendevi translates to “you were descending” or “you used to descend.” As a regular -ere verb, its imperfect endings attach to the stem scend-: tu scendevi.

Usage and context: Scendevi is used primarily in narrative or descriptive contexts to set past scenes or describe repeated past actions. It conveys continuity or background activity rather than a defined, completed event. It is not a standalone noun or lexical item; its meaning is derived from the infinitive scendere and the surrounding verb phrase. Related forms include scenderei (I would descend), scenderai (you will descend), and the other imperfect and subjunctive variants such as scendeva, scendesse, and scendessi, which are used to express different moods or persons.

Examples:

- Scendevi le scale lentamente, ascoltando la musica. (You were descending the stairs slowly, listening to music.)

- Quando scendevi dal treno, eri stanco ma soddisfatto. (When you were getting off the train, you were tired but satisfied.)

Etymology: scendere derives from the Latin roots that produced the Italian verb scendere, with typical Romance-language evolution. The form scendevi reflects standard Italian conjugation patterns for -ere verbs in the imperfect tense.