Spanish Commands: affirmative and negative imperative
Short answer
Affirmative tú is the third-person present (habla, come); negative tú and every usted form use the subjunctive (no hables, hable, no hable). Pronouns attach to affirmative commands (dímelo) and stand before negative ones (no me lo digas).
Level B1 · verbs, imperative
The rule in full
Affirmative tú = the él/ella form of the present.
- hablar → habla, comer → come, abrir → abre
Eight irregular tú commands
| Verb | tú | Verb | tú |
|---|---|---|---|
| decir | di | salir | sal |
| hacer | haz | ser | sé |
| ir | ve | tener | ten |
| poner | pon | venir | ven |
Negative commands use the present subjunctive — for every person:
| Affirmative | Negative | |
|---|---|---|
| tú | habla | no hables |
| usted | hable | no hable |
| vosotros | hablad | no habléis |
| ustedes | hablen | no hablen |
Pronouns: attached in the affirmative, before the verb in the negative.
- ¡Dímelo! vs ¡No me lo digas!
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