Tense guide

Imperativo
Spanish tense guide

Used to give direct commands and instructions. '¡Habla más despacio!' — Speak more slowly! The yo form does not exist in the imperative.

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Regular examples

PronounHablarComerVivir
yo
hablacomevive
él/ellahablecomaviva
nosotroshablemoscomamosvivamos
vosotroshabladcomedvivid
ellos/ellashablencomanvivan

Endings

-AR: —, -a, -e (subj.), -emos (subj.), -ad, -en (subj.)

-ER: —, -e, -a (subj.), -amos (subj.), -ed, -an (subj.)

-IR: —, -e, -a (subj.), -amos (subj.), -id, -an (subj.)

Important notes

Tú form = the él/ella present indicative for regular verbs. Vosotros = infinitive minus -r plus -d. Usted/ellos use the present subjunctive forms. Key irregulars for tú: sé (ser), ve (ir), ten (tener), haz (hacer), di (decir), pon (poner), sal (salir), ven (venir). Negatives use the subjunctive: ¡No hables!, ¡No vayas!