Completing the command paradigm beyond tú: siga, pasen, venid, and when Spain actually uses each
Can give instructions politely to one or several people using formal and plural commands
Подивіться на ці приклади. Чи можете ви помітити граматичну закономірність?
Siga recto hasta el semáforo y gire a la derecha; la farmacia de guardia está al lado del estanco.
Carry straight on to the traffic lights and turn right; the on-duty pharmacy is next to the tobacconist's.
Pasen, siéntense y rellenen este impreso mientras esperan.
Come in, sit down and fill in this form while you wait.
Chicos, poned la mesa y bajad la basura antes de que llegue la abuela.
Kids, set the table and take the rubbish down before Grandma arrives.
Зверніть увагу на виділені частини. Що у них спільного?
At A1 you learned the tú command (habla, come, ven). To get around Spain you need the other three, because the commands you hear at a ticket window, a doctor's surgery or a station barrier are rarely addressed to tú. English has one imperative for everyone - "come in, sit down" - so the choice of form here is all about whom you are talking to and how many of them there are.
| Verb | tú | usted | vosotros | ustedes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| hablar | habla | hable | hablad | hablen |
| comer | come | coma | comed | coman |
| subir | sube | suba | subid | suban |
Take the yo form of the present, drop the -o, and switch the vowel: -ar verbs take -e, -er and -ir verbs take -a. The neat part is that irregular yo forms carry their irregularity across by themselves:
| Infinitive | yo (present) | usted | ustedes |
|---|---|---|---|
| tener | teng-o | tenga | tengan |
| salir | salg-o | salga | salgan |
| seguir | sig-o | siga | sigan |
| cerrar | cierr-o | cierre | cierren |
Five verbs do not follow the recipe: ser → sea / sean, ir → vaya / vayan, saber → sepa / sepan, dar → dé / den, estar → esté / estén. These are the present subjunctive forms, which you will meet again shortly.
Swap the final -r of the infinitive for -d: pasar → pasad, venir → venid, hacer → haced. There are no irregular ones; even ir gives id. With the reflexive pronoun os the d drops: sentarse → sentaos, callarse → callaos.
In the Canary Islands, in parts of western Andalusia and in all of Latin America, ustedes is also the informal plural, so in Las Palmas or in Lima the mother in the park says Niños, recojan eso. If you are learning Latin American Spanish, the vosotros column is one you only need to recognise.
Застосуйте цю граматику у вправах курсу A2
Вправи для практикиSiga recto hasta el semáforo y gire a la derecha; la farmacia de guardia está al lado del estanco.
Carry straight on to the traffic lights and turn right; the on-duty pharmacy is next to the tobacconist's.
Seguir → sigo → siga: the e>i change of the present carries over into the usted command automatically.
Pasen, siéntense y rellenen este impreso mientras esperan.
Come in, sit down and fill in this form while you wait.
Three ustedes commands in a row: the standard register at any Spanish public counter.
Chicos, poned la mesa y bajad la basura antes de que llegue la abuela.
Kids, set the table and take the rubbish down before Grandma arrives.
Vosotros commands: infinitive minus -r plus -d. Poner → poned, bajar → bajad. Heard in every household in Spain.
Перевірка для цієї теми готується
Практикувати в курсі
Застосуйте цю граматику у вправах курсу A2