Grammar – Formal Commands (el imperativo)
Commands are used when you ask someone to do something or give instructions to people. In this lesson we learn the formal commands, which are the ones you say to persons where you use the usted or ustedes form. The following table shows the endings for the regular verbs. Note that the stem changes that occur in the yo form, (e->ie, e->i, o->ue, ar/er/ir->go cer->zco etc., ) apply for formal commands:
| hablar | comer | pedir |
|---|
| Usted | hable | coma | pida |
| Ustedes | hablen | coman | pidan |
The following verbs have irregular formal commands:
| dar | estar | ir | saber | ser |
|---|
| Usted | dé | esté | vaya | sepa | sea |
| Ustedes | den | estén | vayan | sepan | sean |
Like in English, the command is usually put in the beginning of the sentence:
Examples:
| Piense antes de hablar. | Think before you speak. |
| Terminen sus tareas escolares. | Finish your homework. |
| Dejen la casa inmediatamente. | Leave the house immediately. |
Grammar – Informal Tú-Commands
In this lesson we learn the commands you say to someone you would address in the tú form. Spanish distinguishes two different types of tú-commands, the affirmative (do something) and the negative (don’t do something). Like the formal commands, we also apply stem changes here:
| hablar | comer | pedir |
|---|
| Affirmative | habla | come | pide |
| Negative | no hables | no comas | no pidas |
The following verbs have irregular informal tú-commands for the affirmative and negative.
| decir | hacer | ir | poner |
|---|
| Affirmative | di | haz | ve/andá (Chile, Argentina) | pon |
| Negative | no digas | no hagas | no vayas | no pongas |
| salir | ser | tener | venir |
|---|
| Affirmative | sal | sé | ten | ven |
| Negative | no salgas | no seas | no tengas | no vengas |
This can be memorized with the rhyming mnemonic device “di haz pon ten, sal sé ve ven.”
Examples:
| Piensa antes de hablar. | Think before you speak. |
| Termina tus tareas escolares. | Finish your homework. |
| No dejes la casa. | Don’t leave the house. |
El vocabulario (Vocabulary) – La salud (Health)
| Los cuidados médicos | Medical attention |
|---|
| la salud | the health |
| la enfermedad | the disease |
| el dolor | the pain |
| el dolor de cabeza | the headache |
| el dolor de estómago | the stomachache |
| el resfriado | the chill, the cold |
| la medicina | the medicine |
| el jarabe | the syrup |
| la gripe | the flu |
| el hospital | the hospital |
| la cama | the bed |
| el médico | the physician |
| la enfermera | the nurse |
| el catarro | the cold |
| la tos | the cough |
| la fiebre | the fever |
| la quemadura del sol | the sunburn |
| el dolor de la muela | the toothache |
El vocabulario (Vocabulary) – El cuerpo (The Body)
| Las partes del cuerpo | Body parts |
|---|
| la cabeza | the head |
| el ojo | the eye |
| la oreja | the ear |