Formal commands

The formal commands are used when you address people who are older than you, a boss, or any person you would use usted or ustedes.

the usted and ustedes commands are formed by using the yo form of the present tense, dropping the -o, and adding -e (usted) -en (ustedes) for AR verbs and -a (usted) -an (ustedes) for ER and IR.

Comer Como + a / an No coma  /  No coman

You keep all the irregularities you have in the YO forms. Irregular Yo forms, stem-changing verbs

Tener Yo- tengo + a / an No tenga / no tengan

Verbs ending in CAR, GAR and ZAR have a spelling change

YO NOSOTROS/NOSOTRAS
VOSOTROS/VOSOTRAS
ÉL/ELLA/USTED ELLOS/ELLAS/USTEDES

CAR– “c” changes to “qu”      Buscar= yo busco    Command: buscqu+e/en
GAR– “g” changes to “gu”      Cargar= yo cargo—– Command: cargu+ e/en
ZAR– “z” changes to “c”          Empezar= yo empiezo  Command: empiec+e/en


Use of pronouns in commands.

The placement of the pronouns is different if the command is affirmative or if it is negative.

In affirmative commands, the pronouns are attached to the command adding an accent mark on the second to last syllable.

Lavarse lávese / lávense

In negative commands, you place the pronoun between the “no” and the command.

Lavarse No se lave / No se laven

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El Español por el Mundo Copyright © by Gemma Morawski and Ani Alcocer is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

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