The imperative expresses a request, order, advice, invitation, or instruction. The focus is on the addressee, since it directs the action to the person receiving the message. In Portuguese, we use the imperative mainly for você, nós, and vocês. The context determines whether it sounds stronger or more courteous.

The affirmative imperative is formed differently for tu, você, nós, vós and vocês. For você, nós and vocês, we use the present subjunctive forms. For tu and vós, in the affirmative, the base comes from the present indicative without the final s for tu. In the negative, we use the present subjunctive for all equivalent persons.

In the affirmative imperative for tu, we use the present indicative form without the final s. In the negative, even for tu, we use the present subjunctive. This difference appears in regular verbs and in many common irregulars.

For você in the imperative, we use the present subjunctive forms. This choice is the most neutral option in formal and urban registers in Brazil.

For Nós, o imperativo usa o presente do subjuntivo e normalmente inclui o sujeito, explccito ou n3o. A forma costuma soar como convite ou sugest3o coletiva. No negativo, mantemos a mesma base do subjuntivo.

Vocês no imperativo usa o presente do subjuntivo, afirmativo e negativo. Essa forma é comum em contextos de grupo, como sala de aula ou instruções coletivas. O sujeito pode aparecer ou ficar implícito.

Vós usa formas próprias, baseadas no presente do indicativo para o afirmativo e no subjuntivo para o negativo. No português contemporâneo, vós é raro no Brasil e mais presente em registros formais ou litúrgicos. Inclui terminação -i no afirmativo e -eis no negativo.

The negative imperative uses present subjunctive for all corresponding persons. The typical structure is not + verb in the subjunctive form. The negative tends to sound less authoritative with polite expressions.

In the affirmative imperative, clitic pronouns typically come after the verb, forming enclisis. In the negative imperative, the pronouns tend to stay before the verb, due to the attraction of not. This difference is central for sentences with se, me, te, o, a, nos, vos, lhes.

Some verbs are irregular in the imperative because they follow the present subjunctive or have special forms for tu. Memorizing the most frequent ones helps in rapid communication. The examples show você (você) and tu, which are the most used forms in Brazil.

In Brazil, você is dominant in urban speech and uses the imperative of the subjunctive. Tu appears more frequently in the South, North and Northeast, with variation between spoken and written. In Portugal, tu and vós have greater presence, with preference for traditional endings.