11.6: El imperativo informal

• We have seen the imperative of Usted, ustedes and nosotros. Now we are going to take a look at the informal imperative (informal (tú) command forms). 

• The tú form is a little bit different from the other forms we have seen. 

• The negative tú form works the same as the other imperative forms you have seen. Just flip the vowel in the indicative conjugation. For example, ¨No hables durante el examen.¨ 

Notice that it is the same as the subjunctive form. Because of this, you have to get the ¨yo¨ form of the indicative and then add the ending to that. For example, ¨No pongas tu mochila en el sofá.¨

todas las conjugaciones del imperativo

What do you notice about the positive tú conjugation?

limpiar

comer

------------------	limpiemos	----------------------	comamos
limpia / no limpies	(limpiad) / no limpiéis	come / no comas	(comed / no comáis)
limpie	limpien	coma	coman

• As you can see above, the positive form of the informal imperative is different. You can think of it in two different ways: take the ¨s¨ off of the indicative tú form, or use the él / ella / usted form of the indicative.

• Example: Habla español en clase, por favor. 

• There are some irregular positive tú forms. Here are the positive and negatives of these verbs with sample sentences.

tener	ten	no tengas
	Ten cuidado, el piso está mojado. (Be careful, the floor is wet. Literally, Have care.)	No tengas miedo. (Don´t be afraid. Literally, Don´t have fear.)
poner	pon	no pongas
	Pon tu mochila en tu cuarto.	No pongas tu mochila en el sofá.
hacer	haz	no hagas
	Haz tu tarea.	No hagas ruido.
venir	ven	no vengas
	Ven a clase a tiempo (on time).	No vengas a clase tarde (late).
ir	ve	no vayas
	Ve a la biblioteca para estudiar si necesitas silencio.  Vete. (Go away.)	No vayas a clase sin tu mochila. No te vayas. (Don´t go).
decir	di	no digas
	Di la verdad. (Tell the truth.)	No digas mentiras. (Don´t tell lies.)
salir	sal	no salgas
	Sal de la casa para las siete. (Leave the house by seven.)	No salgas tarde.
ser	sé	no seas
	Sé bueno.	No seas malo.

Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)

Los pronombres reflexivos con el imperativo informal  

maestra: Siéntate en la silla. (Sit on the chair.)
No te sientes en el piso. (Don´t sit on the floor.)

Notice that the pronoun attaches to the verb with positive commands and that it goes before the verb with negative commands. 

Here is a link to the first level textbook in case you need help reviewing reflexives situations, verbs, and / or pronouns. Notice though, that when you learned these in lesson seven, placement was a bit different. With all of the other conjugations we have learned, the pronouns go before the conjugated verb or attatch to the infinitive. However, with the imperative, the placement depends on whether it is a positive or a negative command. With a negative commant, the reflexive pronoun still goes before the conjugated verb, however, with a positive command, it attaches to the end. 

Here is another example of both positive and negative commands withe reflexive pronouns.

hermano mayor: Levántate a tiempo para que puedas salir conmigo para ir a la escuela. 

                            No te levantes tarde.

Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)

El imperativo informal con pronombres de objeto indirecto

primo 1: ¿Qué les pongo a los tacos?

primo 2: Ponles queso, lechuga, tomate, acuaguate, frijoles y crema agria.

             No les pongas cebolla, por favor. 

Notice that the pronoun attaches to the verb with positive commands and it goes before the verb with negative commands.

Here is a link to the information of indirect object pronouns from lesson 8. Notice though again, that when you learned these in lesson eight, placement was a bit different. With all of the other conjugations we have learned, the pronouns go before the conjugated verb or attach to the infinitive. However, with the imperative, the placement depends on whether it is a positive or a negative command. With a negative command, the indirect object pronoun still goes before the conjugated verb, however, with a positive command, it attaches to the end. 

Here is another example:

hijo: ¿Qué le pongo a la pizza? 

padre: Ponle piña y jalapeño. No le pongas carne, por favor. 

Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)

El imperativo informal con pronombres de objeto directo 

hija: ¿Debo limpiar mi cuarto?

madre: Sí, límpialo, pero no lo limpies antes de comer. (Yes, clean it, but don´t clean it before eating.)

Notice that the pronoun attaches to the verb with positive commands and it goes before the verb with negative commands.

Here is a link to lesson 8 for a review of direct object pronouns. Keep in mind the same difference in placement as with the reflexive and indirect object pronouns.

hijo: ¿Dónde pongo mis zapatos sucios? (Where do I put my dirty shoes?)

padre: Por favor, déjalos afuera. (Please, leave them outside.)

           No los pongas en la casa. (Don ́t put them in the house.)

Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)

El imperativo con pronombres de objecto indirecto y directo juntos.

hermana mayor: Yo sé que no te sientes bien. ¿Te lavo la ropa?

hermana menor: Sí, por favor lávamela.

hermana mayor: ¿Te caliento el caldo?

hermana menor: No, no me lo calientes ahora. Todavía no tengo ganas de comer. Tal vez más tarde. 

Notice that the indirect object pronoun goes before the direct object pronoun. If both pronouns start with an ¨l,¨ change the indirect object pronoun to ¨se.¨

niño: ¿Cuándo le escribo una carta a San Nicolás?

padres: Escríbesela dos semanas antes de la Navidad.

             No se la escribas antes de la última semana de noviembre.

Here is a link to lesson 8 for a review of both indirect and direct object pronouns being used together. Keep in mind the same difference in placement as with the other pronouns we have just gone over. 

Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)