12.2 Formal commands
12. 2 Formal Commands
ANTE TODO
 As you learned in Lección 11, the command forms are
used to give orders or advice.
 Formal commands are used with people you address as
usted or ustedes.
 Most Spanish speakers use ustedes commands for
the plural command, whether they are being formal
or not.
12.2 Formal commands
 Observe the following examples, then study the chart
on the next slide.
Hable con ellos, don Francisco. (hablar)
Talk with them, Don Francisco.
Laven los platos ahora mismo. (lavar)
Wash the dishes right now.
Coma frutas y verduras. (comer)
Eat fruits and vegetables.
Beban menos té y café. (beber)
Drink less tea and coffee.
12.2 Formal commands
Infinitive
Present tense yo form
limpiar
barrer
sacudir
decir (e:i)
pensar (e:ie)
volver (o:ue)
servir (e:i)
limpio
barro
sacudo
digo
pienso
vuelvo
sirvo
Ud. command
Uds. command
limpie
barra
sacuda
diga
piense
vuelva
sirva
limpien
barran
sacudan
digan
piensen
vuelvan
sirvan
12.2 Formal commands
 The Ud. and Uds. commands, like the negative tú
commands, are formed by dropping the final –o of the yo
form of the present tense.
 For –ar verbs, add –e or –en.
 For –er and –ir verbs, add –a or –an.
12.2 Formal commands
 Verbs with irregular yo forms maintain the same
irregularity in their formal commands. These verbs
include conducir, conocer, decir, hacer, ofrecer, oír,
poner, salir, tener, traducir, traer, venir, and ver.
Oiga, don Francisco…
Listen, Don Francisco…
Ponga la mesa, por favor.
Set the table, please.
¡Salga inmediatamente!
Leave immediately!
Hagan la cama antes de salir.
Make the bed before leaving.
12.2 Formal commands
 Note also that stem-changing verbs maintain their stemchanges in Ud. and Uds. commands.
e:ie
No pierda la llave.
Cierren la puerta.
o:ue
Vuelva temprano, joven.
Duerman bien, chicos.
e:i
Sirva la sopa, por favor.
Repitan las frases.
12.2 Formal commands
 Verbs ending in -car, -gar, and -zar have a spelling
change in the command forms.
sacar
c  qu
saque, saquen
jugar
g  gu
juegue, jueguen
almorzar
z c
almuerce, almuercen
12.2 Formal commands
 The following verbs have irregular formal commands.
Infinitive
Ud. command
Uds. command
dar
estar
ir
saber
ser
dé
esté
vaya
sepa
sea
den
estén
vayan
sepan
sean
12.2 Formal commands
 To make a formal command negative, simply place no
before the verb.
No ponga las maletas en la cama.
Don’t put the suitcases on the bed.
No ensucien los sillones.
Don’t dirty the armchairs.
12.2 Formal commands
 In affirmative commands, reflexive, indirect and direct
object pronouns are always attached to the end of the verb.
Siéntense, por favor.
Acuéstense ahora.
Sígame, Laura.
Pónganlas en el suelo, por favor.
12.2 Formal commands
 In negative commands, these pronouns always precede
the verb.
No se preocupe. No los ensucien.
No me lo dé. No nos las traigan.
12.2 Formal commands
 Ud. and Uds. can be used with the command forms to
strike a more formal tone. In such instances they follow
the command form.
Muéstrele usted la foto a su amigo.
Show the photo to your friend.
Tomen ustedes esta alcoba.
Take this bedroom.
12.2 Formal commands
¡ATENCIÓN!
 When a pronoun is attached to an affirmative command
that has two or more syllables, an accent mark is added
to maintain the original stress:
limpie
lean
diga
sacudan




límpielo
léanlo
dígamelo
sacúdanlos
12.2 Formal commands
¡INTÉNTALO! Indica cuáles son los mandatos afirmativos y
negativos correspondientes.
Afirmativo
1. escucharlo (Ud.)
2. decírmelo (Uds.)
3. salir (Ud.)
4. servírnoslo (Uds.)
5. barrerla (Ud.)
6. hacerlo (Ud.)
7. ir (Uds.)
8. sentarse (Uds.)
_________.
_________.
_________.
_________.
_________.
_________.
_________.
_________.
Negativo
_________.
_________.
_________.
_________.
_________.
_________.
_________.
_________.