Imperative Mood in SpanishA2

The imperative mood is used to direct the action toward another person or toward a group. It is used to give orders, instructions, warnings, advice, and direct requests. In Close the door!, Cook on low heat and Stop by my house tomorrow, the intention is to influence what the listener will do. It also appears on signs and brief instructions, such as No smoking or Open here. In Verb moods you can see that each mood presents the action in a different way; the imperative presents it as something that you want to happen now or right away.

It is used when the speaker and listener have a relationship that allows asking, ordering, or suggesting clearly. It can sound firm, neutral, or friendly depending on the context. A boss says Finish the report today, a mother says Wash your hands, a friend says Come with me, and a sign says Wait your turn. When the idea is not to command but to talk about a desired action, the subjunctive is normally used, as in expressions treated in Modo Subjuntivo. The imperative appears when the intention is direct and the listener must act.

Situations for direct use of the imperative

Usage	Explanation
Clear orders	Use the imperative when you want to give a direct instruction without beating around the bush.
Quick advice	Use the imperative when you want to offer a brief recommendation that is easy to follow.
Urgent warnings	Use the imperative when you need to draw immediate attention to a danger or precaution.
Direct requests	Use the imperative when you want to ask for something in a friendly and very clear way.

Show Translation

The affirmative imperative for tú typically derives from the third person singular present: habla, come, vive. That's why you say habla más despacio, come verduras and vive cerca de aquí. The affirmative imperative for usted uses the subjunctive form: hable, coma, viva. You hear it in hable conmigo, coma aquí and viva tranquilo. With irregular verbs, the form changes completely: ven, di, haz, sal, pon, ten, sé and ve. In direct requests, these forms stand alone before the complement: dime la verdad, hazlo ahora, ven temprano.

Affirmative imperative of tú and usted

Subject	Infinitive	Conjugation
tú	hablar	habla
usted	comer	coma
tú	abrir	abre
usted	escribir	escriba

ScrambleShow TranslationShow Questions

With nosotros, the affirmative imperative expresses an invitation or a shared decision. The form matches the present subjunctive: hablemos, comamos, vivamos. It is used in phrases like hablemos después, comamos en casa and vivamos tranquilos. With vosotros, the affirmative imperative ends in -d: hablad, comed, vivid. It also remains in many irregular verbs: salid, poned, venid. When a pronoun is added, the d disappears: hablad + os gives haceos in the most traditional usage and sentaos in the more extended form. For the general rule, the basic form is the ending in -d.

Inclusive and plural affirmative imperative

Subject	Infinitive	Conjugation
nosotros	hablar	hablemos
vosotros	hablar	hablad
nosotros	comer	comamos
vosotros	vivir	vivid

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The negative imperative is formed with no + present subjunctive for all persons: no hables, no coma, no hablemos, no habléis, no coman. A special form for the negative is not used. Therefore it is learned together with the subjunctive, since the verbal form is the same. It is said no salgas, no pongas eso ahí, no seáis ruidosos and no lleguen tarde. In a negative order, the verb always goes in subjunctive even though the sense is prohibition, rejection, or warning.

Negation with the present subjunctive

Subject	Infinitive	Conjugation
tú	hablar	no hables
usted	comer	no coma
nosotros	salir	no salgamos
vosotros	tener	no tengáis

ScrambleShow Translation

Some affirmative commands are very common forms that do not follow the regular pattern. Ven comes from ir or venir depending on the context: ven aquí. Di is used for decir: di la verdad. Haz comes from hacer: haz la tarea. Sal commands to go out: sal de la sala. Pon asks to place something: pon la mesa. Ten expresses possession or attitude: ten paciencia. Sé is used with ser: sé amable. Ve commands to go: ve al médico. Dame unites the command and pronoun in one form: dame el libro. These forms are used in short, direct orders, just as in Modos verbales the forms depending on the speaker's intention are distinguished.

Frequently used irregular commands

Idea
The command ven is used to invite someone to come closer.
The command di is used to ask someone to say something.
The command haz is used to ask someone to perform an action.
The command pon is used to indicate that someone should place something somewhere.
The command ten is used to ask someone to keep or hold something.
The command sé is used to express a quality or attitude.
The command ve is used to indicate movement toward another place.
The command dame is used to ask for something to be handed over directly.

Show Translation

In Spain, vosotros is used to talk to several close people and has its own imperative: hablad, comed, venid. In much of America, vosotros is hardly used and ustedes takes its place in plural address. Therefore you say hablen, coman, vengan for several people in normal situations. The choice depends on the region and the level of formality. In a group of friends in Spain you may hear venid pronto; in Mexico, Colombia, Argentina or Chile it is normal vengan pronto.