A2Verbs

Imperativo irregular

The irregular imperative

Spanish has a special tú form for these verbs — and these eight cut it short.

The eight forms

Eight very common verbs do not use the he/she form for the tú command. They have their own short, one-syllable form that you learn by heart. Their vosotros forms stay regular.

Infinitive, tú and vosotros

InfinitivetúvosotrosMeaning
venir¡Ven!¡Venid!come
poner¡Pon!¡Poned!put
salir¡Sal!¡Salid!go out
hacer¡Haz!¡Haced!do / make
decir¡Di!¡Decid!say / tell
tener¡Ten!¡Tened!have
ir¡Ve!¡Id!go
ser¡Sé!¡Sed!be

The short forms in a sentence

¡Ven a mi casa mañana!

Come to my house tomorrow!

¡Pon el libro en la mesa!

Put the book on the table!

¡Sal de la habitación!

Get out of the room!

¡Haz los deberes antes de cenar!

Do your homework before dinner!

¡Di la verdad!

Tell the truth!

¡Ten cuidado con el perro!

Be careful with the dog!

¡Ve a casa ahora!

Go home now!

¡Sé amable con todos!

Be kind to everyone!

The accent on sé separates it from the pronoun se (they sound the same). sé also means I know: no sé.

Practise it in conversation.

In Lingoo you read a short story at your level, practise the new forms and act out the situation in a conversation. The first 7 days are free.

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