Imperative Mood in Spanish

Introduction

• In this lesson, we will learn about the imperative mood for regular verbs.
• There will be another video for irregular verbs.
• The imperative is used to give commands, advice, and instructions.

Personal Pronouns

• Tú and Usted: are the singular forms.
• Ustedes: is the plural form.
• Vosotros: is mainly used in Spain (it will not be covered in this lesson).

Formation of the Imperative

Affirmative Form

• Regular Verbs with 'Tú':
  • Example: Caminar (to walk)
    • Present: Tú caminas.
    • Imperative: Camina (the 's' is removed).
  • Other examples:
    • Hablar (to speak): Habla.
    • Llamar (to call): Llama.
    • Escuchar (to listen): Escucha.
    • Mirar (to look): Mira.
• Regular Verbs with 'Usted':
  • Change the final vowel of the present form.
    • If it ends in 'a', change to 'e'.
    • If it ends in 'e', change to 'a'.
  • Example: Caminar
    • Present: Usted camina.
    • Imperative: Camine.
  • Example: Comer (to eat)
    • Present: Usted come.
    • Imperative: Coma.

Negative Form

• Regular Verbs with 'Tú':
  • Change 'as' in the present to 'es'.
  • Example: Caminar
    • Present: Tú caminas.
    • Negative Imperative: No camines.
  • Other examples:
    • Hablar: No hables.
    • Llamar: No llames.
    • Escuchar: No escuches.
    • Mirar: No mires.
• Regular Verbs with 'Usted':
  • The negative form is the same as the affirmative, just adding 'no'.
  • Example: No camine, No coma.

Plural Form (Ustedes)

• Both in affirmative and negative:
  • Use the same word adding 'no' for the negative form.
  • Example: Caminar
    • Present: Ustedes caminan.
    • Imperative: Caminen.
    • Negative Imperative: No caminen.
  • Other examples:
    • Hablar: Hablen, No hablen.
    • Llamar: Llamen, No llamen.
    • Escuchar: Escuchen, No escuchen.
    • Mirar: Miren, No miren.

Practical Exercise

• Example with the verb Pintar (to paint)
  • Tú:
    • Affirmative: Pinta.
    • Negative: No pintes.
  • Usted:
    • Affirmative: Pinte.
    • Negative: No pinte.
  • Ustedes:
    • Affirmative: Pinten.
    • Negative: No pinten.

Conclusion

• Practice with different verbs to master the use of the imperative.
• A video for irregular verbs in the imperative will be coming soon.
• A PDF with more examples can be downloaded.
• Leave comments or questions for additional clarifications.