The Imperative Mood in Italian
Different Types of Imperative
If you have read other articles about the imperative mood in Italian, you already know that there are different forms of imperative, depending on the person you address (formal vs informal) and the type of order you are giving (affirmative vs negative).
Let me give you a quick overview:
- Informal imperative: addressed to the second person singular tu. It has two different conjugations, depending on whether the verb is affirmative or negative.
- Formal imperative: addressed to the formal third person singular lei. It has one form only, for both affirmative or negative.
- Imperative with pronouns: it can be displayed in four different ways, depending on whether it is addressed to tu or lei and whether it is affirmative or negative.
Of course, when I use some linguistic terms I do not expect you to remember all of them – although it would be good! I provide you with this information because I need to refer to some of them to explain some topics, and it is best if you can at least recognize them.
Italian has several types of pronouns:
- Personal pronouns: You might know these as subjects. These are the Italian io, tu, lui/lei/Lei, noi, voi, loro. These pronouns are not relevant for the current topic.
- Direct pronouns: These are the object of transitive verbs like mangiare (to eat), comprare (to buy), vedere (to buy). They are connected to verbs without the use of any preposition.
- Indirect pronouns: These are the object of intransitive verbs like andare (to go), arrivare (to arrive), morire (to die). They are connected to the verbs with the use of a preposition.
- pronoun ci: Normally translated into “there”, is used for places.
- pronoun ne: Used to refer to topics and parts of amounts. It substitutes objects that are introduced by the preposition di.
As mentioned, pronouns placement depends on the type of verb you are conjugating. Rule of thumb: pronouns follow the verb with the affirmative informal imperative and precede it with the affirmative formal imperative.
How to use the Informal Imperative in Italian
The affirmative informal imperative in Italian is used to give positive commands, orders, and instructions to a second person singular/plural interlocutor, that is, a person or group of people we are familiar with.
Here is a table displaying the conjugation of the informal imperative in Italian:
| Infinitive | Translation | Tu | Noi | Voi |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mangiare | to eat | mangia | mangiamo | mangiate |
| Correre | to run | corri | corriamo | correte |
| Aprire | to open | apri | apriamo | aprite |
Italian Informal Imperative with Pronouns
When you use the affirmative informal imperative form with tu, pronouns are attached to the end of the verb and form one unique word.
Credi-mi.
Trust me.
Compra-lo.
Buy it.
Parlale!
Speak to her!
Chiamami!
Call me!
This phenomenon also happens when we use double pronouns: both of them follow the verb and are attached to it, forming a single word.
Remember that indirect pronouns always precede direct pronouns. When this happens, indirect pronouns change their vowel from -i into –e, for instance mi, ti, ci, and vi become me-, te-, ce- and ve-. Also, be aware that li and le become glie-.
Passa-me-lo.
Pass it to me.
Manda-glie-li.
Send them to him/her/them.
Metti-te-lo.
Put it on (yourself).
Another thing to remember is that when the imperative form of the verb consists only of one syllable, pronouns double their consonant. Thereforemi becomes –mmi, ti becomes –tti, and –lo becomes –llo.
Dimmi!
Tell me!
Fallo!
Do it!
When we use the negative informal imperative, things change a little. This happens because the negative informal imperative in Italian is formed with the structure non + infinitive, and this verb has some influence on the behavior of pronouns.
When this happens, pronouns can either precede or follow the verb.
Nonchiamarmi! / Non mi chiamare
Do not call me!
Non parlarle! / Non le parlare!
Do not speak to her!
The choice is up to you! Nothing really changes.
Ready to Give Orders
Studialo, usalo, prendici confidenza! (Study it, use it, become familiar with it!)
Being able to properly master Italian pronouns is a hard challenge, I know. Things become even harder when they are combined with verbs. But as you saw now, nothing is impossible and rules are pretty straightforward.
Practice a lot, engage in conversations, and get ready to obtain what you want with Italian imperatives!
