L’Impératif — commands and requests | French Grammar
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Giving orders, advice and instructions. This guide explains L’Impératif in French with clear rules, real examples and practice for every CEFR level. For instance: « Finis ! » — Va !.
L’Impératif
Giving orders, advice and instructions
1. La formation
| Personne | parler | finir | aller |
|---|---|---|---|
| (tu) | Parle ! (no -s !) | Finis ! | Va ! |
| (nous) | Parlons ! | Finissons ! | Allons ! |
| (vous) | Parlez ! | Finissez ! | Allez ! |
2. La règle du -s
| Indicatif | Impératif | Exception |
|---|---|---|
| tu parles | Parle ! | — |
| tu manges | Mange ! | — |
| tu vas | Va ! | Vas-y ! (the -s returns before y/en) |
| tu manges (+ en) | Manges-en ! | same rule |
3. Les irréguliers
| Verbe | tu | nous | vous |
|---|---|---|---|
| être | sois | soyons | soyez |
| avoir | aie | ayons | ayez |
| savoir | sache | sachons | sachez |
| vouloir | — | — | veuillez (formal please) |
4. Avec les pronoms
| Affirmatif — pronom APRÈS | Négatif — pronom AVANT |
|---|---|
| Lève-toi ! | Ne te lève pas ! |
| Donne-le-moi ! | Ne me le donne pas ! |
| Allez-y ! | N’y allez pas ! |
💡 Politesse
Bare imperatives can sound harsh — soften with s’il te plaît / s’il vous plaît or use a question :
« Tu peux fermer la porte ? » is often more natural than « Ferme la porte ! »
Veuillez + infinitive = the formal written “please” : veuillez patienter.
📚 Free French lessons at learnfrench.co
🔊 Example sentences
✍️ Practice
(parler, tu) → ___ plus fort ! (drop the -s)
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Parle
(être, vous) → ___ prudents ! (irregular)
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Soyez
se lever, tu, affirmative → ___ ! (pronoun after)
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Lève-toi
y aller, tu → ___ ! (the -s returns)
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Vas-y
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🎯 More practice — translation — put it into French
Translate into French: « Listen carefully and repeat. » (translation)
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Écoute bien et répète.
Translate into French: « Please sit down. » (translation)
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Asseyez-vous, je vous en prie.
Translate into French: « Don’t worry! » (translation)
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Ne t’inquiète pas !
Go further: this chart is one small piece — get the full picture in our guide 7 common French mistakes English speakers make.
L’Impératif in French — FAQ
How do you use L’Impératif in French?
Giving orders, advice and instructions. Follow the rules and patterns in the lesson above, and practise with real sentences like « Finis ! » (Va !).
Can you give an example of L’Impératif in French?
Yes — « Finis ! » means « Va ! », and « Finissons ! » means « Allons ! ». The lesson above has many more examples with explanations.
What CEFR level is L’Impératif?
This topic is introduced around A2 and refined at higher levels — pick your level from the links at the top of the page. You can also drill it with the interactive exercises and games below.
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🎬 The 20-second version
5 quick questions on « L’Impératif » — guess before the reveal. Practise with the free games → Open this short as a page — transcript included →