The Informal Singular Imperative in Brazilian Portuguese

In Brazilian Portuguese, the informal singular imperative is used to give commands, instructions, or advice to someone you are close to, such as a friend, family member, or a peer.

1. The Affirmative Informal Imperative

According to standard Portuguese grammar, the informal affirmative command (used for tu) is formed by taking the tu form of the present indicative tense and dropping the final "s". Conveniently, this means the command looks exactly like the ele/ela/você (he/she/you) form in the present tense!

• Falar (to speak) → Ele fala → Fala! (Speak!)
• Comer (to eat) → Ele come → Come! (Eat!)
• Abrir (to open) → Ele abre → Abre! (Open!)

Examples:

• Fala comigo, por favor. (Speak with me, please.)
• Come tudo! (Eat everything!)
• Abre a porta. (Open the door.)

Note on Brazilian usage: Even if a Brazilian uses você instead of tu in everyday speech, they will almost always use these informal tu commands (fala, come, abre) in spoken language, rather than the formal subjunctive commands (fale, coma, abra).

2. Common Irregular Affirmative Commands

While most verbs follow the rule above, some of the most common verbs have short, irregular informal command forms. Here are the most important ones:

• Fazer (to do/make) → Faz! (Do it! / Make it!)
  • Faz o seu trabalho. (Do your job.)
• Dizer (to say/tell) → Diz! (Say it! / Tell!)
  • Diz a verdade. (Tell the truth.)
• Ir (to go) → Vai! (Go!)
  • Vai para casa. (Go home.)
• Ter (to have) → Tem! (Have!)
  • Tem paciência! (Have patience!)
• Vir (to come) → Vem! (Come!)
  • Vem aqui rápido. (Come here quickly.)

3. The Negative Informal Imperative

Standard grammar dictates that to form a negative informal command (telling someone not to do something), you must use the present subjunctive.

• For tu: Use the 2nd person singular of the subjunctive (e.g., Não fales!)
• For você: Use the 3rd person singular of the subjunctive (e.g., Não fale!)

The Brazilian Colloquial Reality: In everyday, informal spoken Brazilian Portuguese, people usually ignore the subjunctive rule completely. They simply put não in front of the affirmative informal command!

Examples (Spoken Brazilian Portuguese):

• Não fala tão alto! (Don't speak so loud!)
• Não come o meu bolo! (Don't eat my cake!)
• Não faz isso! (Don't do that!)