A2 (Elementary)Lesson 4: Negation, Affirmation & Imperative
The affirmative imperative expresses commands, requests and invitations. Learn the standard tu/você forms and recognise Brazilian spoken variants, whose use depends on region and context.
Standard você commands use the present subjunctive: regular falar → fale, comer → coma, abrir → abra.
Many standard tu commands drop -s from the second-person present indicative: falas → fala, comes → come. In speech these short forms can also address você.
For a group, use vocês with the present-subjunctive plural: falem!, comam!; vá → vão, dê → deem.
A handful of irregulars: ser → seja, ir → vá, fazer → faça, ter → tenha.
Soften a request with por favor, a question (Você pode…?) or vamos / que tal + infinitive.
Tone, context and the relationship between speakers determine whether an imperative is a command, request or invitation.
Standard você: present subjunctive, 3rd-person singular; regular -AR → -e (fale), -ER/-IR → -a (coma, abra). Standard tu: present indicative, 2nd-person singular without -s, with exceptions (fala; sê, tem). Vocês: present subjunctive, 3rd-person plural (falem; vão, deem).
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Commands and requests fill everyday life — from Entra! (Come in!) to Vem cá! (Come here!) to Experimenta! (Try it!). Their force depends on tone, context and the relationship between speakers. Knowing when to use the imperative and when to soften it with por favor or a question helps when giving directions, sharing instructions or encouraging a friend.
For você, the standard affirmative imperative uses the third-person singular of the present subjunctive. With the regular verbs below, the change from the present indicative of ele/ela is easy to see:
| Verb | Present (ele/ela) | Command | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| falar (-AR) | fala | Fale! | Speak! |
| esperar (-AR) | espera | Espere! | Wait! |
| comer (-ER) | come | Coma! | Eat! |
| beber (-ER) | bebe | Beba! | Drink! |
| abrir (-IR) | abre | Abra! | Open! |
| partir (-IR) | parte | Parta! | Leave! |
"Entre e fique à vontade!" (Come in and make yourself at home!)
"Senta aqui do meu lado." (Sit here next to me.)
"Fala comigo depois." (Talk to me later.)
"Deixa que eu pago!" (Let me get this!)
"Experimenta o bolo!" (Try the cake!)
"Siga reto até o semáforo." (Go straight until the traffic light.)
"Vire à esquerda no banco." (Turn left at the bank.)
"Pegue o metrô da linha verde." (Take the green line subway.)
"Desça na próxima estação." (Get off at the next station.)
Standard você: Sente-se! (Sit down!)
Standard tu: Senta-te!
Colloquial Brazilian speech: Se senta! or just Senta!, also when addressing você.
Senta-se is a present-indicative form; it is not the standard reflexive imperative for tu. That does not mean the form is absent from Brazil.
passear → passeie (not "passee")
pentear → penteie (not "pentee")
This i does not appear in every person: nós passeemos.
Standard written Portuguese distinguishes tu and você commands, but Brazilian speech also uses short forms such as Fala! and Vem cá! to address você, alongside Fale! and Venha cá!. Research finds regional differences in the choice between these forms; there is no single pattern for all of Brazil. Short forms also occur in advertising. Sources: Só Português, PortVix research.
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