The Italian Imperative (Informal): How to Give Commands with Tu and Voi

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“Dimmi la verità!” “Non preoccuparti.” “Vieni qui, ragazzi, mangiate!” Whenever you ask a friend for help, give a recipe, tell a child to hurry up or give directions on the street, you use the imperative. It is one of the most useful moods for daily life, and the informal forms (for tu and voi) are the ones you meet first. Giving an order in Italian does not mean being rude: in class I do it all the time, with a smile («Dimmi!», «Prova!», «Non avere paura!»). Here you learn the regular and irregular forms (va’, fa’, di’, sii), the negative and the pronouns attached to the verb. The forms are checked on the sources listed at the end; examples, exercises and advice come from my lessons.

What the imperative is and which persons it has

According to the Enciclopedia dell’italiano, the imperative has only the present tense and, in its own forms, only the second person singular (tu) and plural (voi). The first person plural (noi) and the third persons are expressed with the present subjunctive, which Treccani calls the congiuntivo esortativo: amiamo (let’s love), and for politeness, forms such as taccia or entrino. This article focuses on tu and voi; the polite Lei form is a topic for a later lesson, but you can already notice that it comes from the subjunctive.

Regular forms

The rule from Treccani is simple: the voi form is identical to the present indicative in all three conjugations, and the tu form is identical to the present indicative in the second and third conjugations. Only the first conjugation is different, because the tu imperative ends in -a (mangia), like the third person of the present. Here is the pattern:

Verb	tu	voi	noi (exhortation)
parlare	parla!	parlate!	parliamo!
scrivere	scrivi!	scrivete!	scriviamo!
dormire	dormi!	dormite!	dormiamo!
finire	finisci!	finite!	finiamo!

There is no special sign to recognise an imperative: it is the context, the intonation and often an exclamation mark (corri!, scappa!). The Treccani grammar adds that the modal verbs potere, dovere and volere have no imperative: you cannot say “devi!” as an order to “must”; you use another verb.

Irregular imperatives

Treccani lists the short forms for tu of five very common verbs, written with an apostrophe because a syllable has been dropped: di’ (dire), fa’ (fare), sta’ (stare), da’ (dare), va’ (andare). The same sources accept the alternatives fai, stai, dai, vai, which in practice are the forms most learners use and hear; the apostrophe versions are also correct. Note that these are written with an apostrophe, never with an accent.

Two verbs have their own forms. For essere the tu imperative is sii (sii gentile) and the voi form is siate; for avere they are abbi (abbi pazienza) and abbiate. The voi forms sappiate (sapere) and vogliate (volere) are also given by Treccani, borrowed from the subjunctive.

Infinitive	tu	voi
essere	sii	siate
avere	abbi	abbiate
andare	va’ / vai	andate
dare	da’ / dai	date
dire	di’	dite
fare	fa’ / fai	fate
stare	sta’ / stai	state
venire	vieni	venite
uscire	esci	uscite

The last two rows (venire, uscire) follow the present indicative and I add them myself because they are among the most requested. Some of these short forms have become expressions: dai! is an encouraging interjection (“come on!”), and ma va’! expresses disbelief. Treccani records both.

The negative imperative: non + infinitive

The negative imperative is the only one that does not follow the affirmative form for tu. As Treccani explains, it uses the infinitive preceded by non for tu, and the present indicative with non for voi:

• Parla! → Non parlare! / Parlate! → Non parlate!
• Scrivi! → Non scrivere! / Scrivete! → Non scrivete!
• Dormi! → Non dormire! / Dormite! → Non dormite!

A very frequent mistake is non parla! or non fai! for “don’t do it”; the right form is non fare!. Remember: for a single friend, “don’t” is non + infinitive.

Where the pronouns go

This is the point where the imperative needs the most attention. With the affirmative imperative the unstressed pronouns are always enclitic, written attached to the verb: dammi (give me), leggilo (read it), scrivetele (write to them / write them). Treccani underlines that the difference between imperative and indicative is made by position and intonation: sentimi (listen to me) versus mi senti (do you hear me?).

In the negative imperative, both positions are possible: non mi guardare or non guardarmi (don’t look at me). With the formal exhortative (the Lei form) the pronoun goes in front: me la legga subito, as the same entry shows.

Two practical details help. First, after the short forms di’, fa’, da’, sta’, va’ the first letter of the pronoun is doubled in pronunciation and in writing, and the apostrophe disappears: dimmi, fammi, dammi, dillo, fallo, vattene. Treccani does not discuss this doubling in these entries, so take it as a teaching tip. Second, when there are two pronouns, they join in a fixed order: dammelo (give it to me), portacela (bring it to us).

Other ways to give an order

Italians do not always use the imperative. The Treccani entry lists several alternatives that you should recognise:

• the present indicative with an orders value: Ora ti siedi e mi racconti tutto (now you sit down and tell me everything);
• the infinitive on signs and in manuals: spingere, tirare;
• short nouns or adverbs without a verb: fuori!, silenzio!, attento!.

These are also very handy in the kitchen, in the classroom and on the street. If you want to express a polite request, remember that the imperative can sound very direct for a beginner. Adding per favore, un attimo or a smile solves almost every problem. To practise with verbs that take reflexive pronouns (alzati, siediti, svegliatevi), review the article on Italian reflexive verbs.

The negative, the big trap

With tu the negative is formed with the infinitive (Non andare!), while in German and French you simply negate the imperative (Geh nicht!, Ne va pas!). People who think in another language tend to copy the pattern. It is the most frequent mistake on this topic, and it is perfectly normal: mistakes are welcome, and it fades with habit.

• Non parla! → Non parlare! Negative tu uses the infinitive.
• Mangi! (as an order) → Mangia! In the first conjugation the imperative ends in -a.
• Dimmi lo. → Dimmelo. Pronouns are attached in the affirmative imperative.
• Fa’ mi un favore. → Fammi un favore. Attach the pronoun and double its first letter.
• Sei gentile! (as an order) → Sii gentile! Essere has its own imperative.
• Venga qui, Marco! (to a friend) → Vieni qui, Marco! The Lei form is only for formal situations.

A dialogue with a few polite orders

Giulia: Non riesco a trovare la libreria. Dimmi come arrivo!
Marco: Allora, esci dalla stazione e vai dritto per cento metri. Poi gira a destra e attraversa la piazza.
Giulia: Aspetta, scrivo tutto. Ripeti, per favore!
Marco: Certo. Non fermarti al bar, sei sempre in ritardo! Fai attenzione alle biciclette.
Giulia: Va bene. Chiamami quando arrivi!
Marco: D’accordo, ma tu sii puntuale!

In the dialogue you find regular forms (esci, gira, attraversa, aspetta, ripeti), irregular forms (dimmi, vai, fai, sii), a negative (non fermarti) and pronouns attached to the verb (dimmi, chiamami, fermarti). For the prepositions of place used in directions, read my article on the Italian simple prepositions.

Command exercises

Exercise 1 – Write the tu imperative

1. (aprire) ______ la finestra, per favore.
2. (prendere) ______ l’ombrello.
3. (ascoltare) ______ questa canzone.
4. (essere) ______ paziente.
5. (andare) ______ a casa.

Answers: 1. Apri; 2. Prendi; 3. Ascolta; 4. Sii; 5. Va’ (or Vai).

Exercise 2 – Make it negative

1. Aspetta qui. → ______
2. Mangiate tutto. → ______
3. Dimentica le chiavi. → ______
4. Fai rumore. → ______

Answers: 1. Non aspettare qui. 2. Non mangiate tutto. 3. Non dimenticare le chiavi. 4. Non fare rumore.

Exercise 3 – Add the pronoun

1. Dai il libro a me. → ______
2. Leggete la lettera. → ______ (la)
3. Di’ la verità a me. → ______
4. Non guardare me. → ______ (two ways)

Answers: 1. Dammi il libro. 2. Leggetela. 3. Dimmi la verità. 4. Non mi guardare / Non guardarmi.

Before you go

• In your language, is the imperative the same as the present tense, or does it have its own forms?
• How would you ask a friend to open the window, and how would you ask a stranger? What changes in tone?
• Write five “do” and five “don’t” instructions for a new flatmate, using at least two verbs with pronouns.

How I would train it

Start with the verbs you will use every day: dimmi, guarda, aspetta, scusa, vieni, dai, fammi vedere. They are short, frequent and useful in real conversation. Then add the negative with non + infinitive and finally the pronouns. If you want to continue with another verb that works “backwards”, review the previous article on the Italian verb piacere.

Go on, tell me: shall we talk?

If you want to train orders and advice in a real conversation, book a free trial lesson, take the level test and join the course waiting list, which is open.

Sources

• Treccani – “Imperativo”, Enciclopedia dell’italiano
• Treccani – “imperativo, forme di [prontuario]”, Enciclopedia dell’italiano

The forms of the imperative, the negative and the attached pronouns are checked on the sources listed above. Tables, dialogue, exercises and advice come from my work in the classroom.