At its core, succedere is a verb that helps us talk about things that happen. But it doesn’t stop there.
succedere
Before we look at how to use it, there’s one important grammar point to keep in mind: succedere always pairs with essere (to be) in compound tenses (è successo). This is important, because using avere (to have) instead can completely change what you’re trying to say. Let’s compare these two sentences:
- È successo: It happened —> Here, successo is the past participle of our verb and forms the compound tense with essere.
- Ha successo: He/she has success. —> Here, successo is a noun meaning “success.”
See how the choice between essere and avere gives successo a totally different role?
Another key point is that succedere has two past participles: successo and succeduto. Which one we use depends on the meaning we want the verb to express. Don’t worry, this will become clear throughout the article with examples.
1. Succedere= To happen, to occur
This is, by far, the most frequent way you’ll use succedere. Whether you’re talking about everyday events or major historical happenings, this is the standard verb for describing things that occur.
Che noia, non succede mai niente in questo paese!
How boring, nothing ever happens in this town!
Ciò che successe nel Medioevo ha lasciato tracce visibili ancora oggi.
What happened in the Middle Ages still leaves visible traces today.
When succedere means “to happen,” the past participle is successo:
Non ti preoccupare, è successo anche a me!
Don’t worry, it happened to me too!
Here’s a list of common expressions with succedere that you’ll hear all the time:
- Che cosa succede? / Che succede? (What’s happening? / What’s going on?). This is commonly used when we notice something unusual and want to know more.
- È successo qualcosa? (Did something happen?). Very similar to the previous one, but here the question starts with the verb. It’s a great way to check in if someone seems upset or you walk into a room and it suddenly goes quiet.
- Che ti succede? (What’s wrong with you? / What’s happening to you?). By adding the object pronoun ti (to you), the question here focuses specifically on the person we’re speaking to, asking what is affecting them personally.
- Succede! / Può succedere! (It happens / It can happen). This is our way of shrugging off little mistakes. Spilled coffee on the freshly washed white tablecloth? Just smile and say, “Succede!”
- Non succede niente! (It’s no big deal — literally, “Nothing is happening”). We use this whenver someone freaks out over a tiny mistake and want to reassure them it’s nothing to worry about.
- Tutto può succedere! (Anything can happen!). This is the perfect phrase for moments full of uncertainty, hope, or excitement. Like sitting through a movie, unsure how it will end, or wondering if your team will actually win the game.
- Succeda quel che succeda (Come what may — literally, “Whatever happens, happens”). This is a bit more philosophical! It’s what we say when we’ve done our part and are ready for any outcome.
- È successo di tutto! (Everything happened!). We use this when we are about to share a story where everything that could go wrong did go wrong!
- Non succederà più (It won’t happen again). This is a classic way to apologize or promise a mistake won’t be repeated. It’s polite but a little formal, and might come across as quite rigid in casual conversation.
- Come se niente fosse successo (As if nothing had happened). This expression describes the art of acting perfectly normal even after causing a little disaster. Like when someone accidentally drops a bottle of pasta sauce in a supermarket and instead of helping, they just keep walking toward the prosciutto aisle! We often shorten it to Come se niente fosse.
- È successo che… (What happened was…) This is a useful phrase to start explaining something that happened.
2. Succedere= To succeed, to take over a role
In the the world of kings, CEOs, and family dynasties, succedere also means “to succeed someone.”
The key expression here is succedere a qualcuno (to succeed someone). Unlike English, where “to succeed” is a direct verb, in Italian you always need the preposition a(to) before the person being replaced. Think of it literally as “succeeding to someone.”
La figlia non vuole succedere al padre nella gestione dell’azienda.
The daughter doesn’t want to take over the business from her father.
When succedere is used with this meaning, its past participle is succeduto, not successo.
Nel 2009 Barack Obama è succeduto a George W. Bush come Presidente.
In 2009, Barack Obama succeeded George W. Bush as President.
Using the appropriate past participle is key. For instance, È successo al re literally means “Something happened to the king,” which sounds like a tragic accident (the poor guy!). To express that someone took over the king’s role, we should always use è succeduto instead.
3. Succedere= To follow
The third way to use succedere is in a more physical sense: it means to follow or come after something else. In this context, it’s all about the order of things or events.
Like the “to succeed someone” meaning, when we use succedere to mean “to follow,” we still use the past participle succeduto and the preposition a (to follow to something).
Alle grida è succeduto un lungo silenzio.
A long silence followed the shouts.
When things follow one another in a continuous or repeating sequence, we often use the reflexive form succedersi, which gives the sentence a sense of rhythm or regularity.
Le giornate si succedevano sempre uguali.
The days followed one another, always the same.
Le stagioni si succedono, portando colori diversi.
The seasons follow one another, bringing different colors.
Succedere vs. Capitare vs. Accadere vs. Avvenire
When talking about something happening, you might also see the verbs accadere, capitare, and avvenire in Italian. They all mean “to happen” and are largely interchangeable, but each carries slightly different shades of formality and usage.
Also, they all use the auxiliary essere (to be) in compound tenses (e.g., è successo, è capitato, è accaduto, è avvenuto).
Here’s how to use them:
- Succedere: Most common in spoken, everyday Italian.
Che confusione, cos’è successo?
What a mess, what happened?
Chiamatemi se succede qualcosa di importante.
Call me if something important happens.
- Capitare: Casual and informal, it mostly suggests something was unplanned, random or happened by chance. When using capitare, it’s very common to include an indirect object pronoun (mi, ti, etc.) to indicate who experiences the event.
Ultimamente, mi capita spesso di vederlo al bar.
Lately, I often happen to see him at the bar.
Le capitava spesso di confondere i nomi delle persone.
She often happened to mix up people’s names.
- Accadere: Slightly more formal, mainly used in writing, news reports, or official contexts. We rarely use it in casual conversation with friends.
L’incidente è accaduto ieri sera intorno alle 23.
The accident happened last night at 11 PM.
Nessuno sa cosa accadrà dopo la firma del contratto.
No one knows what will happen after the contract is signed.
- Avvenire: This is also quite formal, emphasizing that an event took place.
L’incontro tra i due leader è avvenuto ieri a Roma.
The meeting between the two leaders took place yesterday in Rome.
Valentina Nicastro is a travel writer in love with her home country, Italy. Having travelled widely around the globe, she realised there was more to explore closer to home and decided to put the passport aside for a while. When she is not immersed in documenting Italy, you’ll find her donning her communication consultant hat, weaving words as a content writer and bridging linguistic divides as a translator.
