By the end of this lesson you'll be able to give instructions, tell people what to do and what not to do, and suggest doing something together.
Three forms, no subject
The imperative is the form you use for commands, instructions and suggestions. You've already used it in the lesson on asking for directions: Tournez à droite, Allez tout droit.
It has only three forms, one each for tu, nous and vous. They come from the present tense, but you leave out the subject.
- Tu form: telling one person you call tu.
- Vous form: telling one person you call vous, or more than one person.
- Nous form: suggesting something, meaning "let's".
Regular verbs
Here's one verb from each family you know from the lesson on regular -er verbs and the lesson on -ir and -re verbs.
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| parle / parlons / parlez | parl / par-LOHN / par-LAY | speak / let's speak / speak |
| finis / finissons / finissez | fee-NEE / fee-nee-SOHN / fee-nee-SAY | finish / let's finish / finish |
| attends / attendons / attendez | ah-TAHN / ah-tahn-DOHN / ah-tahn-DAY | wait / let's wait / wait |
There's one change to watch for. -er verbs drop the final -s of the tu form: tu parles becomes Parle ! The -ir and -re verbs keep theirs: Finis !, Attends !
Écoute la musique !
Listen to the music!
Regardez !
Look!
Choisis un livre.
Choose a book.
Attendons Paul.
Let's wait for Paul.
Aller and faire
These two use forms you've met in the lesson on faire and aller. Aller behaves like an -er verb, so tu vas becomes Va !, with no -s. Faire keeps fais, and the vous form is faites, as it always is.
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| va / allons / allez | vah / ah-LOHN / ah-LAY | go / let's go / go |
| fais / faisons / faites | feh / fuh-ZOHN / fet | do, make / let's do, let's make / do, make |
Être and avoir
These two have command forms all of their own, so you'll need to learn them separately. They're less common than the others, and you'll see them mostly in a few set phrases.
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| sois / soyons / soyez | swah / swah-YOHN / swah-YAY | be / let's be / be |
| aie / ayons / ayez | eh / eh-YOHN / eh-YAY | have / let's have / have |
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| patient / patiente | pah-SYAHN / pah-SYAHNT | patient (masculine / feminine) |
| sage | sahzh | well-behaved (of a child)Sois sage ! (Be good!) |
| avoir peur | ah-vwahr PUHR | to be afraidN'aie pas peur ! (Don't be afraid!) |
| s'il te plaît | seel tuh PLEH | please (informal) |
Sois sage !
Be good! (to a child)
Soyez patiente, madame.
Please be patient, madam.
Saying don't
To tell someone not to do something, put ne…pas around the verb, just as you do in a statement.
Ne tourne pas ici !
Don't turn here!
N'allez pas à la gare.
Don't go to the station.
Ne faisons pas les courses.
Let's not do the food shopping.
Being polite
A command on its own can sound abrupt. Add s'il te plaît with someone you call tu, or s'il vous plaît with someone you call vous.
- Attends, s'il te plaît. (Wait, please.)
- Tournez à droite, s'il vous plaît. (Turn right, please.)
Now you can see why directions sound the way they do. A passer-by says Prenez la première rue à gauche with the vous form, because you're a stranger. A friend would use the tu form instead.
Putting it together
Here's someone giving a friend a lift, with instructions from the passenger seat.
- Va tout droit, et tourne à gauche. (Go straight on, and turn left.)
- Ici ? (Here?)
- Non, attends ! Ne tourne pas ici. Va au feu. (No, wait! Don't turn here. Go to the lights.)
- Allons au marché. (Let's go to the market.)
What's next
Next, the lesson on the near future shows you how to talk about what's going to happen, using aller again. Combine it with what you know about giving instructions, and you'll be able to plan a whole day out.