Download U.7 – imperativi The imperative is the command form of the verb

U.7 – imperativi
The imperative is the command form of the verb. “Get out of here.”,
“Please sit down.”, and “Don’t worry.” are all imperatives.
Unlike in English, the imperatives for the formal you (Lei), the informal you (tu),
and the plural you (voi) are different in Italian.
In English:
Speaking to your friend Mario: “Come with me.”
Speaking to your friends Mario and Luca: “Come with me.”
Speaking to Mr. Moretti: “Come with me.”
In Italian:
Speaking to your friend Mario: “Vieni con me.”
Speaking to your friends Mario and Luca: “Venite con me.”
Speaking to Mr. Moretti: “Venga con me.”
As you can see, the topic is significantly more complicated in Italian than in
English.
I. To form the formal (Lei) imperative:
1. Think of the “io” form of the verb.
2. Take off the “o” and the end.
3. Add the “opposite” ending.
–ARE verbs change to an “i” ending
ex: parlare – think of “parlo” – switch the “o” to “i” – imperative = “parli”
–ERE and –IRE verbs change to an “a” ending
ex: mettere – think of “metto” – switch the “o” to “a” – imperative = “metta”
4. Remember that verbs with irregular “io” forms will have irregular imperative
forms. (Ex: venire “vengo” - imperative is “venga”)
***There are also other irregular formal imperatives. See your book.
II. To form the informal (tu) imperative:
1. For –ARE verbs: The imperative is the same as the 3rd person singular of the
indicative tense.
ex: parlare
parlo
parli
parla – this is the 3rd person singular, thus the imperative is “parla”
2. For –ERE and –IRE verbs: The imperative is the same as the second person
singular of the indicative tense.
ex: mettere
metto
metti – this is the 2nd person singular, thus the imperative is “metti”
***There are also irregular informal imperatives. See your book.
3. THE NEGATIVE INFORMAL COMMAND IS ALWAYS “NON” + THE INFINITIVE
OF THE VERB. “NON PARLARE”, “NON METTERE” ETC.
III. To form the plural (voi) imperative:
For all verbs, think of the “voi” form of the present indicative. The voi imperative
is identical to this form.
Ex: parlare
parlo
parli
parla
parliamo
parlate - this is the voi imperative form
mettere - “mettete”
finire – “finite”
etc.
IV. Prounouns and imperatives
With formal (“Lei”) imperatives, the pronoun precedes the verb form. With ALL
other imperatives, the pronoun is attached.
This rule applies no matter which type of pronoun is used (reflexive pronouns,
direct object pronouns, indirect object pronouns, ci, or ne). It applies to both
affirmative and negative forms.
Ex: alzarsi (to get up, reflexive verb)
Formal:
Informal:
plural:
si alzi
alzati
alzatevi
non si alzi
non alzarti
non alzatevi
Ex: “call me” – “me” is a direct object
Formal:
Informal:
plural:
mi chiami
chiamami
chiamatemi
non mi chiami
non chiamarmi
non chimatemi