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Imperative

A1

With the imperative you give instructions, requests, and advice — from recipes to directions. You practice the du-form, ihr-form, and Sie-form so you can ask in the right tone.

  • Imperative, du-form
  • Imperative, Sie-form (formal)
  • Imperative, ihr-form

Grammar → Imperative

Explanation

With the imperative you express requests, commands, and advice. The verb is always in position 1.

There are three forms, depending on who you address:

  1. du-form (informal, one person): verb stem without du and without -st. Example: du kommst → Komm!
  2. ihr-form (informal, several people): like the ihr conjugation, but without ihr. Example: ihr kommt → Kommt!
  3. Sie-form (formal): infinitive + Sie. Example: Kommen Sie!
More
In the du-form you can usually drop the -e at the end of the stem — Komm! and Komme! are both correct. For some verbs the form with -e is better or even required: when the stem loses -e- (rechnen → rechne!, atmen → atme!), with verbs ending in -eln and -ern (wandere!, lächle!), and with stems ending in -t or -d (bete!, rede! — nicer than bet!, red!).
VerbduihrSie
kommenKomm!Kommt!Kommen Sie!
machenMach!Macht!Machen Sie!
geben (e→i)Gib!Gebt!Geben Sie!
lesen (e→ie)Lies!Lest!Lesen Sie!
sein (Sonderform)Sei!Seid!Seien Sie!

Find words

Imperative or not?

Which imperative form fits?

Put sentences in order

Fill in the blanks

Grammar in context

Read these texts to consolidate what you learned. They fit this grammar lesson especially well.

StoryEin Tag am See

A Day at the Lake

Ein Tag am See

A boat trip, a mysterious island, and a lost bag.

StoryIm Büro

At the Office

Im Büro

Lisa meets interesting people at work.

StoryMatteo ist krank

Matteo Is Sick

Matteo ist krank

Matteo is sick. Is he going to work?

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