The imperative mood is a grammatical mood that forms a command or request.
50-428: In Modern English , we is a plural , first-person pronoun . In Standard Modern English, we has six distinct shapes for five word forms : There is also a distinct determiner we as in we humans aren't perfect , which some people consider to be just an extended use of the pronoun. We has been part of English since Old English , having come from Proto-Germanic * wejes , from PIE * we -. Similarly, us
100-417: A future not immediate, as if it were an action to come, but earlier in relation to another that will also happen in the future. However, this type of imperative is peculiar to French which has only one purpose: to order that something be done before the date or time, therefore, this will always be accompanied by a circumstantial complement of time. However, this imperative is formed with the auxiliary verb of
150-474: A construction with the imperative of the verb let : Other languages such as Latin , French and German have a greater variety of inflected imperative forms, marked for person and number, their formation often depending on a verb's conjugation pattern. Examples can be found in the specific language sections below. In languages that make a T–V distinction ( tu vs. vous , du vs. Sie , tu vs. você , tú vs. usted , etc.)
200-438: A conversational partner in their needs of self-determination and territory: the partner's negative face should not appear threatened. As well as the replacement of imperatives with other sentence types as discussed above, there also often exist methods of phrasing an imperative in a more polite manner, such as the addition of a word like please ; or a phrase like if you could ; or substituting one directive for another, as in
250-682: A mild or polite imperative, in order to avoid directly addressing the person or to simplify the sentence's construction. Although sometimes used in spoken language, this form is most commonly used in general instructions and recipes. Examples include: Like English, German features many constructions that express commands, wishes, etc. They are thus semantically related to imperatives without being imperatives grammatically: Examples of regular imperatives in French are manges ( 2SG ), mangez ( 2PL ) and mangeons ( 1PL , "let's eat"), from manger (to eat) – these are similar or identical to
300-411: A purely Latin alphabet of 26 letters . Imperative mood The imperative mood is used to demand or require that an action be performed. It is usually found only in the present tense, second person. They are sometimes called directives , as they include a feature that encodes directive force, and another feature that encodes modality of unrealized interpretation. An example of a verb used in
350-487: Is a simultaneous reference to the individual, and to the collective of which the individual is a member. If ants or hive bees could use English, they might use the pronoun we almost exclusively. Human cultures can be categorized as communal or individualist; the membership we aligns more with a communal culture. The speaker, or thinker, expresses ideas with awareness of both themselves and the collective of other members. If language constrains or liberates thinking, then using
400-420: Is formed by adding –a to the verbal-stem ( gwel- → gwela 'see!') while the plural/polite form takes –wch : gwelwch 'see!'. In informal writing, the plural/polite form is often used to translate 'please' as in talwch yma '(please) pay here' ( talwch is the plural/polite imperative form of talu 'to pay'). In literary Welsh there are imperatives for all persons and numbers, except for
450-412: Is formed with the infinitive of the verb, preceded by the imperative of nōlle (to not want): For third-person imperatives, the subjunctive mood is used instead. In Latin there is a peculiar tense in the imperative, which is the future tense that is used when you want the mandate to be fulfilled in the future. This time is used mainly in laws, wills, precepts, etc. However, it is conjugated only with
500-406: Is negated using do not , as in "Don't touch me!"; see do -support . Occasionally do is not used: Dare not touch me! ) The imperative form is understood as being in the second person (the subject pronoun you is usually omitted, although it can be included for emphasis), with no explicit indication of singular or plural. First and third person imperatives are expressed periphrastically , using
550-459: Is only possible after the special let of let's do that . Pronouns rarely take dependents , but it is possible for we to have many of the same kind of dependents as other noun phrases . We 's referents generally must include the speaker, along with other persons . A few exceptional cases, which include nosism , are presented below. We is always definite and specific . The royal we , or majestic plural ( pluralis majestatis ),
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#1732780209372600-469: Is privately acquainted, which holds true for the corresponding imperatives. (For details see German grammar .) Otherwise, the social-distance pronoun Sie (you) is used for both singular and plural. Since there exists no actual imperative corresponding to Sie , the form is paraphrased with the third-person plural of the present subjunctive followed by the pronoun: Occasionally, the infinitive ( Infinitiv or Infinitiv als Imperativ ) may be used as
650-425: Is sometimes used by a person of high office, such as a monarch , earl, or pope . It has singular semantics. The editorial we is a similar phenomenon, in which an editorial columnist in a newspaper or a similar commentator in another medium refers to themselves as we when giving their opinion. Here, the writer casts themselves as spokesperson : either for the media institution who employs them or on behalf of
700-471: Is the same as the second-person plural of the present tense. In order to emphasize their addressee, German imperatives can be followed by the nominative personal pronouns du ("thou; you SG ") or ihr ("you PL "), respectively. For example: " Geh weg! " – " Geh du doch weg! " ("Go away!" – "Why, you go away!"). German has T/V distinction , which means that the pronouns du and ihr are used chiefly towards persons with whom one
750-458: Is used for more purposes than any other language". Its large number of speakers, plus its worldwide presence, have made English a common language (lingua franca) "of the airlines, of the sea and shipping, of computer technology, of science and indeed of (global) communication generally". Modern English evolved from Early Modern English which was used from the beginning of the Tudor period until
800-496: Is used to assert the imperative mood in sentences that would be translated as "let's (let us)" in English. An example of this is Me haere tāua , which translates to "let us (you and me) go", but the "us" component goes last. Imperative sentences sometimes use different syntax than declarative or other types of clauses. There may also be differences of syntax between affirmative and negative imperative sentences. In some cases
850-457: The avoir compound tenses and with the auxiliary verb être that is also used to form the tenses composed of the pronominal verbs and some of the intransitive verbs, this means that the structure of the verb imperative in its entirety is composed. In English there is no equivalent grammatical structure to form this tense of the imperative mood; it is translated in imperative mood of present with previous value. In Spanish, imperatives for
900-585: The Ethnologue , there are almost one billion speakers of English as a first or second language. English is spoken as a first or a second language in many countries, with most native speakers being in the United States , the United Kingdom , Australia , Canada , New Zealand and Ireland . It "has more non-native speakers than any other language, is more widely dispersed around the world and
950-701: The Indian subcontinent , Africa , Australia and New Zealand . Modern English has many dialects spoken in many countries throughout the world, sometimes collectively referred to as the English-speaking world . These dialects include (but are not limited to) American , Australian , British (containing Anglo-English , Scottish English and Welsh English ), Canadian , New Zealand , Caribbean , Hiberno-English (including Ulster English ), Indian , Sri Lankan , Pakistani , Nigerian , Philippine , Singaporean , and South African English . According to
1000-592: The Interregnum and Stuart Restoration in England. By the late 18th century, the British Empire had facilitated the spread of Modern English through its colonies and geopolitical dominance. Commerce, science and technology, diplomacy, art, and formal education all contributed to English becoming the first truly global language. Modern English also facilitated worldwide international communication. English
1050-421: The gerund form. The best known examples are "No Smoking" and "No Parking". This form does not have a positive form; that is, "Parking" by itself has no meaning unless used as a noun when it tells that parking is permitted. The following sentences demonstrate several different forms of the imperative mood. For more details on imperatives in the languages listed below, and in languages that are not listed, see
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#17327802093721100-471: The irrealis moods . Imperative mood is often expressed using special conjugated verb forms. Like other finite verb forms, imperatives often inflect for person and number . Second-person imperatives (used for ordering or requesting performance directly from the person being addressed) are most common, but some languages also have imperative forms for the first and third persons (alternatively called cohortative and jussive respectively). In English ,
1150-534: The 15th century, so that, by the century's end, the Middle English forms of we had solidified into those we use today. We is not generally seen as participating in the system of gender . In Old English, it did not. Only third-person pronouns had distinct masculine, feminine, and neuter gender forms. But by the 17th century, that old gender system, which also marked gender on common nouns and adjectives , had disappeared, leaving only pronoun marking. At
1200-452: The French and Greek languages as a point of reference. See Latin conjugation . Sentence examples of the future imperative: A peculiar feature of Dutch is that it can form an imperative mood in the pluperfect tense . Its use is fairly common: German verbs have a singular and a plural imperative. The singular imperative is equivalent to the bare stem or the bare stem + -e . (In most verbs, both ways are correct.) The plural imperative
1250-422: The addressee(s). English does not make this distinction grammatically, though we can have both inclusive and exclusive semantics. Imperative let's or let us allows imperatives to be inclusive. Compare: We is used sometimes in place of you to address a second party: A doctor may ask a patient: "And how are we feeling today?". A waiter may ask a client: "What are we in the mood for?" The membership we
1300-401: The articles on the grammar of the specific languages. English usually omits the subject pronoun in imperative sentences: However, it is possible to include the you in imperative sentences for emphasis. English imperatives are negated using don't (as in "Don't work!") This is a case of do -support as found in indicative clauses; however in the imperative it applies even in the case of
1350-507: The change from will to may e.g, "you will do that" becomes "you may / can do that". Imperatives are also used for speech acts whose function is not primarily to make an order or request, but to give an invitation, give permission, express a wish, make an apology, et cetera: When written, imperative sentences are often, but not always, terminated with an exclamation mark . First person plural imperatives ( cohortatives ) are used mainly for suggesting an action to be performed together by
1400-637: The collective, and the change in viewpoint is significant: Modern English Modern English , sometimes called New English ( NE ) or present-day English ( PDE ) as opposed to Middle and Old English , is the form of the English language that has been spoken since the Great Vowel Shift in England , which began in the late 14th century and was completed by the 17th century . With some differences in vocabulary, texts which date from
1450-491: The corresponding present indicative forms, although there are some irregular imperatives that resemble the present subjunctives, such as sois , soyez and soyons , from être (to be). A third person imperative can be formed using a subjunctive clause with the conjunction que , as in qu'ils mangent de la brioche ( let them eat cake ). French uses different word order for affirmative and negative imperative sentences: The negative imperative (prohibitive) has
1500-616: The course of the 20th century. Note, however, that these are generalizations, and some of these may not be true for specific dialects: Up until the American–British split (1600–1725), some major phonological changes in English included: After the American-British split , further changes to English phonology included: Changes in alphabet and spelling were heavily influenced by the advent of printing and continental printing practices. Consequently, Modern English came to use
1550-636: The early 17th century, such as the works of William Shakespeare and the King James Bible , are considered Modern English texts, or more specifically, they are referred to as texts which were written in Early Modern English or they are referred to as texts which were written in Elizabethan English. Through colonization , English was adopted in many regions of the world by the British Empire , such as Anglo-America ,
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1600-420: The familiar singular second person ( tú ) are usually identical to indicative forms for the singular third person. However, there are irregular verbs for which unique imperative forms for tú exist. vos ( alternative to tú ) usually takes the same forms as tú (usually with slightly different emphasis) but unique forms exist for it as well. vosotros (plural familiar second person) also takes unique forms for
1650-426: The imperative form of the verb is itself different when negated. A distinct negative imperative form is sometimes said to be in prohibitive or vetative mood ( abbreviated PROH ). Negative imperatives tell the subject to not do something. They usually begin with the verb "don't" or the negative form of a verb. e.g., example, "Don't be like that." Many languages, even not normally null-subject languages , omit
1700-412: The imperative is formed using the bare infinitive form of the verb (see English verbs for more details). This is usually also the same as the second-person present indicative form, except in the case of the verb to be , where the imperative is be while the indicative is are . (The present subjunctive always has the same form as the imperative, although it is negated differently – the imperative
1750-407: The imperative mood is the English phrase "Go." Such imperatives imply a second-person subject ( you ), but some other languages also have first- and third-person imperatives, with the meaning of "let's (do something)" or "let them (do something)" (the forms may alternatively be called cohortative and jussive ). Imperative mood can be denoted by the glossing abbreviation IMP . It is one of
1800-769: The imperative. If an imperative takes a pronoun as an object, it is appended to the verb; for example, Dime (Tell me). Pronouns can be stacked like they can in indicative clauses: Imperatives can be formed for usted (singular formal second person), ustedes (plural second person), and nosotros (plural first person) from the respective present subjunctive form. Negative imperatives for these pronouns (as well as tú , vos , and vosotros ) are also formed this way, but are negated by no (e.g. No cantes , "Don't sing"). In Portuguese, affirmative imperatives for singular and plural second person ( tu / vós ) derive from their respective present indicative conjugations, after having their final -s dropped. On
1850-693: The listener to do (or not to do) something: "Put down the gun!", "Pass me the sauce", "Don't go too near the tiger." They are also often used for giving instructions as to how to perform a task: "Install the file, then restart your computer". They can sometimes be seen on signs giving orders or warnings "Stop", "Give way", "Do not enter". The use of the imperative mood may be seen as impolite, inappropriate or even offensive in certain circumstances. In polite speech, orders or requests are often phrased instead as questions or statements, rather than as imperatives: Politeness strategies (for instance, indirect speech acts ) can seem more appropriate in order not to threaten
1900-422: The membership we may impact our ability to understand, empathize, and bond with others. The extent of inclusion when using the membership we is loosely definite; the group may be others of the same village, nation, species, or planet. The following two examples show how meaning changes subtly depending on whether I or we is used. When using the membership we , the reader or speaker is automatically drawn into
1950-444: The other hand, their negative imperatives are formed by their respective subjunctive forms, as well as both affirmative and negative imperatives for treatment pronouns ( você(s) ) and plural first person ( nós ). If a verb takes a pronoun, it should be appended to the verb: In spoken Welsh most verbs can form two imperatives, both in the second person: one for singular and one for plural/polite singular. The singular imperative
2000-475: The party or body of citizens who agree with the commentary. The reference is not explicit but is generally consistent with a first-person plural. The author's we , or pluralism modesties , is a practice referring to a generic third person as we (instead of one or the informal you ): We in this sense often refers to "the reader and the author" because the author often assumes that the reader knows and agrees with certain principles or previous theorems for
2050-442: The sake of brevity (or, if not, the reader is prompted to look them up). This practice is discouraged by some academic style guides because it fails to distinguish between sole authorship and co-authorship. Again, the reference is not explicit, but is generally consistent with first-person plural. Some languages distinguish between inclusive we , which includes both the speaker and the addressee(s), and exclusive we , which excludes
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2100-499: The same time, a new relative pronoun system was developing that eventually split between personal relative who and impersonal relative which . This is seen as a new personal / non-personal (or impersonal) gender system. As a result, some scholars consider we to belong to the personal gender, along with who . We can appear as a subject , object , determiner or predicative complement . The reflexive form also appears as an adjunct . The contracted object form 's
2150-459: The same word order as the indicative. See French personal pronouns § Clitic order for detail. Like in English, imperative sentences often end with an exclamation mark, e.g. to emphasize an order. In French there is a very distinctive imperative which is the imperative mood of preterite tense also called (past imperative or imperative of future perfect ), expresses a given order with previous future value which must be executed or fulfilled in
2200-406: The speaker and the addressee (and possibly other people): "Let's go to Barbados this year", "Let us pray". Third person imperatives ( jussives ) are used to suggest or order that a third party or parties be permitted or made to do something: "Let them eat cake", "Let him be executed". There is an additional imperative form that is used for general prohibitions, consisting of the word "no" followed by
2250-458: The subject pronoun in imperative sentences, as usually occurs in English (see below ). Details of the syntax of imperative sentences in certain other languages, and of differences between affirmative and negative imperatives, can be found in some of the other specific language sections below. In writing, imperative phrases and sentences may terminate in an exclamation mark (!). Imperatives are used principally for ordering, requesting or advising
2300-424: The third and second person singular and plural which carries as a gramme or ending -tō for the second and third person singular, -tōte for the second person plural and -ntō for the third person plural. On the other hand, in other languages of the world there is a distinctive imperative, which also has a future value, but with a previous meaning and this is the so-called past imperative that appears in
2350-467: The use of particular forms of the second person imperative may also be dependent on the degree of familiarity between the speaker and the addressee, as with other verb forms. The second person singular imperative often consists of just the stem of the verb, without any ending. For example, Te Reo Māori has the imperative me , which in addition to being put in front of sentences to command (e.g. Me horoi ō ringaringa ; "(you must) wash your hands"),
2400-408: The verb be (which does not use do -support in the indicative): It is also possible to use do -support in affirmative imperatives, for emphasis or (sometimes) politeness: "Do be quiet!", "Do help yourself!". The subject you may be included for emphasis in negated imperatives as well, following don't : "Don't you dare do that again!" Latin regular imperatives include: The negative imperative
2450-636: Was adopted in North America, India, parts of Africa, Australia, and many other regions. In the post-colonial period, some newly created nations that had multiple indigenous languages opted to continue using Modern English as the official language to avoid the political difficulties inherent in promoting one indigenous language above another. The following is an outline of the major changes in Modern English compared to its previous form (Middle English), and also some major changes in English over
2500-459: Was used in Old English as the accusative and dative plural of we , from PIE * nes -. The following table shows the old English first-person plural and dual pronouns: By late Middle English , the dual form was lost, and the dative and accusative had merged. The ours genitive can be seen as early as the 12th century. Ourselves replaced original construction we selfe , us selfum in
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