Verb tenses · Brazilian Portuguese
Portuguese Imperative (Imperativo)
The imperative is the form for telling someone to do something: commands, requests, instructions and recipes.
Me passa o sal, por favor. Pass me the salt, please.
- Used constantly in speech
- Level A2
- Different in Portugal
- -ar
- -e -emos -em
- -er
- -a -amos -am
- -ir
- -a -amos -am
When to use the imperative
Telling a friend or family member to do something, in speech.
Vem cá, olha isso!
Come here, look at this!
Instructions, signs and recipes: the você form.
Misture a farinha com o leite e asse por 30 minutos.
Mix the flour with the milk and bake for 30 minutes.
Telling someone not to do something: não + the subjunctive.
Não se esqueça do guarda-chuva, vai chover.
Don't forget your umbrella, it's going to rain.
A polite request or permission: pode + infinitive.
Pode sentar, o médico já vem.
Have a seat, the doctor will be right with you.
“Let's”: vamos + infinitive.
Vamos embora, já está tarde.
Let's go, it's late.
Often confused with the present subjunctive.
Regular verbs
Every regular verb follows one of these three: -ar like falar (to speak), -er like comer (to eat), -ir like partir (to leave). The ending is in bold and underlined. Tu is used in parts of Brazil, and is shown last.
| Person | falar | comer | partir |
|---|---|---|---|
| vocêvocê | fale | coma | parta |
| nósnós | falemos | comamos | partamos |
| vocêsvocês | falem | comam | partam |
| tuturegional | fala | come | parte |
Spelling changes
Some regular verbs change a letter in this tense to keep the sound of their stem. They aren't irregular: the change is in the spelling, not the sound.
- -car → -queficar → você fiqueand 349 more
- -gar → -guechegar → você chegueand 212 more
- -cer → -çaparecer → você pareçaand 128 more
- -çar → -cecomeçar → você comeceand 99 more
- -gir → -jadirigir → você dirijaand 34 more
- -ger → -japroteger → você protejaand 10 more
- -guer → -gaerguer → você ergaand 2 more
- -guir → -gadistinguir → você distingaand 1 more
- -cir → -çaressarcir → você ressarça
Irregular verbs
The most common irregular verbs in the imperative, most used first. Verbs built on the same one change the same way: learn ter and you know manter and obter. Irregular forms are marked (irregular).
estar
- vocêesteja (irregular)
- nósestejamos (irregular)
- vocêsestejam (irregular)
- tuestá (irregular)
ir
- vocêvá (irregular)
- nósvamos (irregular)
- vocêsvão (irregular)
- tuvai (irregular)
ser
- vocêseja (irregular)
- nóssejamos (irregular)
- vocêssejam (irregular)
- tusê (irregular)
ter
- vocêtenha (irregular)
- nóstenhamos (irregular)
- vocêstenham (irregular)
- tutem (irregular)
poder
- vocêpossa (irregular)
- nóspossamos (irregular)
- vocêspossam (irregular)
- tupode
fazer
- vocêfaça (irregular)
- nósfaçamos (irregular)
- vocêsfaçam (irregular)
- tufaz / faze (irregular)
Also: desfazer, satisfazer and 9 more
saber
- vocêsaiba (irregular)
- nóssaibamos (irregular)
- vocêssaibam (irregular)
- tusabe
querer
- vocêqueira (irregular)
- nósqueiramos (irregular)
- vocêsqueiram (irregular)
- tuquere / quer
Also: maisquerer, malquerer
dizer
- vocêdiga (irregular)
- nósdigamos (irregular)
- vocêsdigam (irregular)
- tudiz / dize (irregular)
Also: contradizer, bendizer and 4 more
ver
- vocêveja (irregular)
- nósvejamos (irregular)
- vocêsvejam (irregular)
- tuvê (irregular)
haver
- vocêhaja (irregular)
- nóshajamos (irregular)
- vocêshajam (irregular)
- tuhá (irregular)
vir
- vocêvenha (irregular)
- nósvenhamos (irregular)
- vocêsvenham (irregular)
- tuvem (irregular)
Any verb in the imperative
How Brazilians use it
Fala or fale?
Both are right. Fale is the standard você form, used in writing, on signs, in recipes and in polite speech, and it's what many Brazilians say every day. Fala, the old tu form, is what many others say to friends and family, even when they call them você.
Brazilians soften their orders
A bare command can sound rude to a stranger. Brazilians add por favor, use pode + infinitive (pode deixar aqui), ask a question (você me ajuda?) or use a diminutive: espera um minutinho.
In Portugal
In Portugal the imperative is built on tu: fala!, come!, abre! to a friend, and não fales for “don't speak”. For você and o senhor or a senhora it's the subjunctive form: fale, coma, abra. Because tu is everyday speech there, the two forms mark informal and formal clearly. In Brazil the line is blurrier: fale is the você form in much of the country, and fala is what many regions say in speech, even to someone they call você.
Common mistakes
Not
Tene paciência.ButTenha paciência.
The você imperative is the present subjunctive, so irregular verbs follow it: ter → tenha, fazer → faça, ir → vá, ser → seja, dizer → diga.
Not
Você fecha a porta, por favor.ButFecha a porta, por favor.
A command drops the subject. With você in front, it sounds like a statement (“you close the door”), or a question if your voice rises.
Not
Não fala alto aqui. (on a sign)ButNão fale alto aqui.
The negative takes the subjunctive: não fale, não coma, não saia. You'll hear não fala in casual speech, but in writing and polite speech it's não fale.
Practise the imperative
Ten questions on the most common verbs. Type the form; you'll see right or wrong at once.
Cheat sheet
The endings and the most common irregular verbs on one printable page.
Imperative cheat sheet (PDF)Questions
How do you form the imperative in Portuguese?
For você, use the present subjunctive: fale, coma, abra; for vocês, falem, comam, abram. In everyday Brazilian speech you'll also hear the ele form of the present used as a command: fala, come, abre.
How do you make a negative command in Portuguese?
Put não before the subjunctive: não fale, não coma, não saia, não se preocupe. In casual speech many Brazilians say não fala, but the subjunctive is what you write.
What is the difference between fala and fale in Portuguese?
Both are commands meaning “speak” or “say”. Fale is the standard form for você, used in writing and polite speech; fala is the informal form, heard in speech in many parts of Brazil and used with tu in Portugal.
Is the imperative rude in Portuguese?
Not with friends and family: me passa o sal is perfectly friendly. With strangers and at work, Brazilians soften it with por favor, pode + infinitive (pode entrar) or a question (você pode me ajudar?).
Related tenses: the present subjunctive, the present
See the imperative in real books
Tables teach the forms; stories teach when to use them. Read Brazilian books and stories at your level, tap any verb for its meaning in that sentence, and press Listen to hear the page in a Brazilian voice.
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