The imperative form ~ L’impératif

The imperative form of the verb is used to give commands or orders. It is the same as the

second person singular (tu) Drink your milk! Bois ton lait !
first person plural (nous) Let’s go to the lake! Allons au lac !
second person plural (vous) Finish your homework! Finissez vos devoirs !

NOTE: For “-er” verbs, the “-s” is dropped from the second person singular (“tu” form) to form
the imperative

Examples:

parler finir attendre

Parle ! Speak! Finis ! Finish! Attends ! Wait!
Parlons ! Let’s speak! Finissons ! Let’s finish! Attendons ! Let’s wait!
Parlez ! Speak! Finissez ! Finish! Attendez ! Wait!

Important irregulars:

être avoir savoir

Be calm! Sois calme ! Be Aie de la Know that I Sache que je
patient! patience ! love you! t’aime !
Let’s Soyons Let’s have Ayons de la Let’s know Sachons la
agree! d’accord ! pity! pitié ! the truth! vérité !
Be good! Soyez sages ! Have Ayez du Know that Sachez qu’il y
courage! courage ! there is a a un contrôle
test demain !
tomorrow!

Exercise : Translate these sentences

1. Write your name! [vous] .....................................................................................

2. Eat your vegetables! [tu] ....................................................................................

3. Let’s read this book! ..........................................................................................

4. Take the dog out for a walk! [tu] ..........................................................................

5. Choose a present! [vous] ....................................................................................

6. Let’s be naughty! (méchant) ................................................................................

7. Let’s speak French! ...........................................................................................

8. Be honest! [tu] ................................................................................................

9. Be happy! [vous] ...............................................................................................

10. Let’s drink our milk! ........................................................................................

The negative form of the imperative 33.

The imperative is made negative by placing “ne” or “n’” before the imperative form of the verb
and “pas” after it.

Examples

Affirmative Negative
Travaille ! Ne travaille pas !
Écoute ! N’écoute pas !

A. Exercise: Rewrite the following imperatives in the negative.

1. Parlez ! ..........................................................................................................

2. Soyez en retard ! .............................................................................................

3. Restons ici ! ...................................................................................................

4. Aie du courage ! ..............................................................................................

5. Écoutez la conversation ! ...................................................................................

B. Exercise: You are telling a child (tu) not to do some things. Write the sentence following the
model.

Model: toucher / le four ! Ne touche pas le four !

1. toucher / le peinture ........................................................................................

2. manger / les fleurs ...........................................................................................

3. être / méchant ...............................................................................................

4. aller / trop près de la piscine ..............................................................................

5. boire / café ...................................................................................................

6. regarder / la télé .............................................................................................

7. prendre / la bouteille de vin ...............................................................................

8. dessiner / sur le mur ........................................................................................

9. tomber / du vélo .............................................................................................

10. utiliser / trop de sel ........................................................................................

11. déchirer / ta chemise ......................................................................................

12. faire / des bêtises ..........................................................................................

13. être / attentif ...............................................................................................

The affirmative form of the reflexives

34.
In the reflexive form, the reflective pronoun follows the verb and is joined to it by a hyphen.
Note that “te” changes to “toi”.

se lever
Get up! [tu] Lève-toi !
Let’s get up! Levons-nous !
Get up! [vous] Levez-vous !

Exercise: Translate the following sentences

1. Let’s get dressed now! ......................................................................................

2. Have fun! [vous] ..............................................................................................

3. Go to bed at 8 o’clock! [tu] ................................................................................

4. Hurry up! [tu] (se dépêcher) ...............................................................................

5. Let’s wake up early ! .........................................................................................

The negative form of the reflexives

In the negative imperative of reflexives, the reflexive pronoun comes before the verb.

se lever
affirmative negative
Lève-toi! Ne te lève pas !
Levons-nous! Ne nous levons pas !
Levez-vous! Ne vous levez pas !

Exercise: You have given the following affirmative commands to a child [tu] and then change
your mind. Change the affirmative commands to negative ones.

1. Couche-toi tout de suite ! ..................................................................................

2. Habille-toi en uniforme scolaire ! ..........................................................................

3. Promène-toi dans le parc ! ..................................................................................

4. Dépêche-toi ! ..................................................................................................

5. Réveille-toi à cinq heures ! ..................................................................................

6. Lave-toi les mains avant le dîner ! ........................................................................

7. Maquille-toi dans la salle de bains ! .......................................................................

8. Mouche-toi avant de sortir ! ................................................................................

35.