AtelierLe journal · French, understood
English

Language

The course

Updated

Cheat sheet

Check French commands: endings, pronouns and hyphens

Edited by Chris Lee · Updated · About the library

A practical French imperative cheat sheet: tu, nous and vous forms, irregular commands, negative order and vas-y, followed by eight questions.

Check the person, then the pattern

A command uses an understood tu, nous or vous: vérifie, vérifions, vérifiez. Check the actual verb form, then its negative and pronouns: rappelle-moi becomes ne me rappelle pas.

Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learn

Two friends arranging a call while talking at a French apartment doorway, one holding a plain phone with screen hidden.
Rappelle-moi demain gives a simple instruction. Illustration: Atelier
Study first · the addressee decides the form
Infinitivetunousvous
vérifiervérifievérifionsvérifiez
finirfinisfinissonsfinissez
fairefaisfaisonsfaites
êtresoissoyonssoyez
avoiraieayonsayez
savoirsachesachonssachez

L’impératif · une vérification en quatre étapes

1 · Keep one addressee

Use the same person through a set of steps. A name can address the listener; it is separate from the command.

Léa, vérifie la date et confirme ton inscription.Léa, check the date and confirm your enrolment.

Vérifiez la date et confirmez votre inscription.Check the date and confirm your enrolment.

2 · Check the final s

Ordinary tu commands of -er verbs lose the present-tense -s. Finis, prends and fais keep theirs. The irregular va also has no final s.

Parle plus lentement, s’il te plaît.Speak more slowly, please.

Fais attention à la date.Pay attention to the date.

3 · Move pronouns with the negative

Affirmative commands attach the pronoun with a hyphen. Negative commands put it before the verb, inside ne … pas. Reflexive toi becomes te.

Rappelle-moi demain. Ne me rappelle pas ce soir.Call me back tomorrow. Don’t call me back this evening.

Prépare-toi. Ne te prépare pas trop tôt.Get ready. Don’t get ready too early.

4 · Look closely at y and en

Add -s to va before an attached y: vas-y. Negative order gives n’y va pas. With va en parler, en belongs to parler, so va stays unchanged.

Vas-y maintenant. N’y va pas trop tard.Go there now. Don’t go there too late.

Va en parler à Léa.Go and talk to Léa about it.

Compare vous vérifiez (a statement), vérifiez (an addressed command) and vérifier (an infinitive instruction). Each has a place in French. For a set of commands, keep the imperative form consistent from one step to the next.

Question 1No account needed
Address one friend with tu.___ la date.

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Vérifie. The ordinary tu imperative of vérifier has no final s: vérifie.

Question 2No account needed
Use the tu imperative of faire.___ attention.

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Fais. Faire keeps -s in the tu imperative: fais attention.

Question 3No account needed
Address someone with vous.___ disponible à dix heures.

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Soyez. Être has the irregular vous imperative soyez. Êtes is indicative.

Question 4No account needed
Use the tu imperative of avoir.___ confiance.

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Aie. The tu imperative is aie. Aies belongs to the subjunctive with tu.

Question 5No account needed
Choose the affirmative command.

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Rappelle-moi demain.. An affirmative command attaches moi with a hyphen: rappelle-moi.

Question 6No account needed
Choose the full written negative of prépare-toi.

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Ne te prépare pas.. The negative puts te before the verb, between ne and prépare.

Question 7No account needed
Choose the affirmative command with attached y.

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Vas-y.. The attached y brings a linking s and a hyphen: vas-y.

Question 8No account needed
Here, en belongs to the following infinitive.___ en parler à Nora.

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Va. Write va en parler: en belongs to parler and is not attached to va.

Your final command check

A self-review aid, not a grade. Ticks are not saved.

Keep going