French - Imparatif (affirmative and negative)

Imperative in French: Affirmative & Negative Commands

The imperative mood (l'impératif) in French is used to give commands, instructions, requests, or advice. It has two forms:

1. Affirmative Imperative (Impératif affirmatif) – tells someone to do something.
2. Negative Imperative (Impératif négatif) – tells someone not to do something.

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1. Affirmative Imperative (Impératif affirmatif)

In the affirmative imperative, the verb is used without a subject pronoun. The forms are generally based on the present tense but without "tu," "nous," or "vous."

Formation

The imperative exists in three persons:

• tu (for informal singular)
• nous (for "let's" commands)
• vous (for formal/plural)

🔹 Conjugation Rules:

• For -er verbs, the "s" is dropped in the tu form.
• For -ir and -re verbs, the forms are the same as the present tense.

Examples

Infinitive	Present Tense (Tu)	Imperative (Tu)	Imperative (Nous)	Imperative (Vous)
parler (to speak)	tu parles	Parle ! (Speak!)	Parlons ! (Let’s speak!)	Parlez ! (Speak!)
finir (to finish)	tu finis	Finis ! (Finish!)	Finissons ! (Let’s finish!)	Finissez ! (Finish!)
vendre (to sell)	tu vends	Vends ! (Sell!)	Vendons ! (Let’s sell!)	Vendez ! (Sell!)

📌 Exception: For -er verbs, keep the "s" in the tu form only when followed by "y" or "en."

• Mange des fruits ! → Manges-en ! (Eat some!)
• Va à l’école ! → Vas-y ! (Go there!)

Pronouns in the Affirmative Imperative

When using object pronouns (me, te, le, la, nous, vous, leur), they follow the verb and are connected by a hyphen.

✅ Examples:

• Donne-moi le livre ! (Give me the book!)
• Écoutez-nous ! (Listen to us!)
• Dis-le-lui ! (Tell it to him/her!)

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2. Negative Imperative (Impératif négatif)

In the negative imperative, the structure is Ne + verb + pas.
Object pronouns come before the verb instead of after it.

Examples

• Ne parle pas ! (Don’t speak!)
• Ne mangeons pas ici ! (Let’s not eat here!)
• Ne finissez pas tout ! (Don’t finish everything!)
• Ne me regarde pas ! (Don’t look at me!)

📌 Pronouns in the Negative Imperative

• Ne me donne pas ce livre ! (Don’t give me this book!)
• Ne lui parle pas ! (Don’t talk to him/her!)
• Ne nous attendez pas ! (Don’t wait for us!)

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Practice Exercises

A. Fill in the Blanks (Affirmative or Negative)

1. (parler – tu) → _______ français, s’il te plaît !
2. (manger – vous) → _______ lentement !
3. (ne pas chanter – nous) → _______ trop fort !
4. (écouter – tu) → _______ bien le professeur !
5. (ne pas répondre – vous) → _______ à cette question !

B. Rewrite with Pronouns

Rewrite the sentences using object pronouns in the imperative.

1. Donne le stylo à moi. → _______ !
2. Ne regarde pas le film. → _______ !
3. Achetez des bonbons pour nous. → _______ !
4. N’écris pas la lettre. → _______ !

A.1 Parle

A.2 Mangez lentement !

A.3 Ne chantons pas trop fort !

A.4 Écoute bien le professeur ! 

A.5 Ne répondez pas à cette question 

B.1 Donne-le-moi ! (Give it to me!)

B.2 Ne le regarde pas ! Don’t watch it!)

B.3 Achetez-nous-en ! (Buy us some!)

B.4 Ne l’écris pas ! (Don’t write it!)