Requests and commands

What should you do in “Würze die Suppe”?

Take a look

Brate das Fleisch in der Pfanne.Fry the meat in the pan.
Würze die Suppe mit Salz und Pfeffer.Season the soup with salt and pepper.
Vergiss das Aufwärmen nicht!Don’t forget to warm up!

The rule

A command or request tells someone what to do: Würze die Suppe mit Salz und Pfeffer. With du, the verb often comes first and loses -st: du würzt, but Würze! Some forms are special, such as du vergisst, but Vergiss! For a polite request with Sie, the verb also comes first, followed by Sie. Bitte makes a request sound friendlier. Notice who the instruction addresses.

Remember: With du, a command often starts with the verb without -st.

Goes with lesson 29, 30, 34 of the course.

What differs for you

English often gives a command with the bare verb and no subject, so the shape of “Würze die Suppe” is familiar. German also drops du in a direct command, but its verb form comes from German conjugation: “du würzt” becomes “Würze”. Some commands are special, as with “Vergiss”. A polite request with Sie follows another pattern.

The forms

Imperative

Grundform	du	ihr	Sie
kommen	Komm!	Kommt!	Kommen Sie!
warten	Warte!	Wartet!	Warten Sie!
nehmen	Nimm!	Nehmt!	Nehmen Sie!
aufstehen	Steh auf!	Steht auf!	Stehen Sie auf!
sein	Sei!	Seid!	Seien Sie!

Common mistakes

*Würzst die Suppe! → Würze die Suppe!
*Du vergiss das Aufwärmen! → Vergiss das Aufwärmen nicht!

Quick check

Which form fits? ___ das Fleisch in der Pfanne.
1. Brate
2. Bratest
3. Braten
Answer
Brate — “Brate” is the command form here, without the du ending -st.
Which form fits? ___ die Suppe mit Salz und Pfeffer.
1. Würzst
2. Würze
3. Würzen
Answer
Würze — “Würze” is the command form here, without the du ending -st.
Which form fits? ___ das Aufwärmen nicht!
1. Vergisst
2. Vergessen
3. Vergiss
Answer
Vergiss — “Vergiss” is the command form here, without the du ending -st.
Which form fits? ___ den Ofen auf 180 Grad vor.
1. Heize
2. Heizen
3. Heizst
Answer
Heize — “Heize” is the command form here, without the du ending -st.
Which form fits? Bitte ___ mir zu.
1. hören
2. hör
3. hörst
Answer
hör — “hör” is the command form here, without the du ending -st.

The same exercises come back in the course — there Langula remembers what you know and asks again at the right moment. Learn German free →

Terms

Imperative: A form used to ask or tell someone to do something: Come, please!
Verb: A word for an action or event: go, sleep, be.

BeforePast perfect AfterReported speech

Verbs

Sein and haben A1Why is it “ich bin” but “er ist”?→Separable verbs A1Why is “auf” at the end?→Können, müssen and wollen A2Why does “sein” appear after “muss”?→Reflexive verbs A2Why is mich in “Ich freue mich auf das Wochenende”?→Passive voice B1The passive voice is used when the action is more important than who performs it.→Subjunctive II B1Subjunctive II expresses unreal situations, wishes, polite requests, and hypothetical conditions.→

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