NOTES
(from Duolingo)
The imperative (commands) is used for giving instructions or orders. In this section, you will find commands for tu, voi, Lei, and noi. These are all formed in slightly different ways.
TU
For affirmative commands for tu, you use the 3rd person singular (the form for lui or lei) in the present for verbs with -ARE and the normal second person (tu) for -ERE and -IRE.
| INFINITIVE | AFFIRMATIVE |
| CHIAMARE | Chiama! |
| LEGGERE | Leggi! |
| SENTIRE | Senti! |
With affirmative commands with tu, pronouns are placed at the end of the verb:
- Chiamami! (Call me!)
For negative commands for tu, you use the infinitive:
| INFINITIVE | NEGATIVE |
| CHIAMARE | Non chiamare! |
| LEGGERE | Non leggere! |
| SENTIRE | Non sentire! |
With negative commands, pronouns can be placed either before or on the end of the verb:
- Non mi chiamare! / Non chiamarmi! (Don’t call me!)
When attached to the end, the final E of the infinitive is dropped.
VOI & NOI
Forming commands with voi and noi is easy – you just use the normal present tense form!
- Chiamate! Non chiamate! (Call! Don’t call!)
- Chiamiamo! Non chiamiamo! (Let’s call! Let’s not call!)
When adding pronouns to these commands, follow the same rules as with “tu” commands:
Affirmative: Chiamatemi! Chiamiamoci! (Call me! Let’s call each other!)
Negative: Non mi chiamate! / Non chiamatemi! Non ci chiamiamo! / Non chiamiamoci!
LEI
Formal commands with Lei use the present subjunctive. You will learn the other forms of the subjunctive mood later. For now, the regular endings for Lei are:
| -ARE | -ERE | -IRE | -IRE (-isc-) |
| -I | -A | -A | -ISCA |
| CHIAMARE | LEGGERE | SENTIRE | CAPIRE |
| CHIAMI | LEGGA | SENTA | CAPISCA |
Words with an irregular “io” form will use that one as the stem for the formal imperative. For example:
Fare –> (io) faccio –> (Lei) faccia!
For the formal imperative, pronouns are always placed before the verb:
- Mi chiami! (Call me!)
- Non mi chiami! (Don’t call me!)
VOCABULARY
(from Duolingo)
| fate | (you) do |
| venga | come |
| stai | (you) are |
| andiamo | we go |
| diciamo | we say |
| sappi | know |
| trovate | (you) find |
| parla | speak |
| metti | put |
| prendi | take |
| porta | door |
| arrivate | arrive |
| chiedi | (you) ask |
| lascia | leave |
| senti | look |
| tieni | (you) have |
| rimanga | remain |
| passa | switch/pass |
| entra | enter |
| lavora | work |
| vivete | live |
| ricordate | remember |
| usi | use |
| chiama | call |
| guarda | look |
| apri | open |
| segui | follow |
| aspetta | wait |
| dimmi | tell me |
| chiamiamoci | let's call each other |
| dammi | give me |
| pensiamoci | let's think about it |
| passiamola | let's pass it |
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