Lesson Transcript

Choose the best answer to complete the sentence. Ready?
los platos después de cenar.
los platos después de cenar.
Lava
Lava
Lava los platos después de cenar.
Lava los platos después de cenar.
"Wash the dishes after dinner."
We use lava in this sentence because it's the regular imperative form used to give a command to one person using tú.
Choose the best answer to complete the sentence. Ready?
tu almuerzo antes de la clase.
tu almuerzo antes de la clase.
Come
Come
Come tu almuerzo antes de la clase.
Come tu almuerzo antes de la clase.
"Eat your lunch before class."
We use come because it's the regular imperative form of comer, used to tell someone informally to eat.
Choose the best answer to complete the sentence. Ready?
más agua cuando hace calor.
más agua cuando hace calor.
Bebe
Bebe
Bebe más agua cuando hace calor.
Bebe más agua cuando hace calor.
"Drink more water when it's hot."
We use bebe because it's the regular imperative form of beber, used to give a command or suggestion to someone using tú.
Unscramble the words to make a sentence.
Ready?
Estudia
Estudia para
Estudia para el
Estudia para el examen
Estudia para el examen de
Estudia para el examen de mañana.
"Study for tomorrow's test."
Estudia para el examen de mañana.
Choose the best answer to complete the sentence. Ready?
(Abres or Abre) la puerta para tu abuela.
(Abres or Abre) la puerta para tu abuela.
Abre
Abre
Abre la puerta para tu abuela.
"Open the door for your grandma."
We use abre in this sentence because it's the imperative form used for giving a direct instruction to tú.
Abres is incorrect here because it's the present indicative form, not the imperative. It means "you open" as a statement, not a command. Imperative sentences use the base verb form without the subject pronoun.
Choose the best answer to complete the sentence. Ready?
(Camina or Caminas) con cuidado en la calle.
(Camina or Caminas) con cuidado en la calle.
Camina
Camina
Camina con cuidado en la calle.
"Walk carefully in the street."
We use camina in this sentence because it's a tú imperative, used to give a direct command or instruction to someone.
Caminas is incorrect here because it is the present indicative form, which describes what someone is doing — "you walk." It's not used for giving commands. The imperative mood uses a different form to directly tell someone what to do.
Let's translate some sentences into Spanish.
Translate "Write your name on the sheet." into Spanish.
escribe, "write" (imperative form for tú)
followed by
tu nombre, "your name"
next
en, "on"
followed by
la hoja, "the sheet"
We use escribe in this sentence because it's a command directed at tú, telling them to write.
Escribe tu nombre en la hoja.
Escribe tu nombre en la hoja.
"Write your name on the sheet."
Translate "Listen to the song and sing with me." into Spanish.
escucha, "listen" (imperative form for tú)
followed by
la canción, "the song"
next
y, "and"
followed by
canta, "sing" (imperative form for tú)
next
conmigo, "with me"
We use escucha in this sentence because it's the imperative form of escuchar, which is used to tell someone to listen.
Escucha la canción y canta conmigo.
Escucha la canción y canta conmigo.
"Listen to the song and sing with me."
Translate "Teach me how to cook something easy." into Spanish.
enséñame, "teach me" (imperative for tú + object pronoun me)
followed by
a cocinar, "to cook"
next
algo, "something"
followed by
fácil, "easy"
We use enséñame in this sentence because it's a tú command with a pronoun attached, used to say "Teach me."
Enséñame a cocinar algo fácil.
Enséñame a cocinar algo fácil.
"Teach me how to cook something easy."
Listen to me as I speak. Which verb in the imperative mood do you hear?
Come tu almuerzo antes de la clase.
Let's listen one more time.
Come tu almuerzo antes de la clase.
Did you hear, come? Come, meaning "eat," is the imperative form used to give a direct command to tú, the informal "you."
How about...?
Estudia para el examen de mañana.
Let's listen one more time.
Estudia para el examen de mañana.
Did you hear, estudia? Estudia, meaning "study," is a tú command—an imperative form used to tell one person what to do.
Next…
Camina con cuidado en la calle.
One more time.
Camina con cuidado en la calle.
Did you hear, camina? Camina, meaning "walk," is used here as a command in the imperative mood for the pronoun tú.
And...
Enséñame a cocinar algo fácil.
One more time.
Enséñame a cocinar algo fácil.
Did you hear, enséñame? Enséñame, meaning "teach me," is the tú command form of enseñar, with me attached as a pronoun to show who is being taught.
Thank you for watching.
Now you know how to ask someone to do something in Spanish.
...and now you can move on to the next lesson in the pathway.
Nos vemos.

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