imperative

The Russian Imperative: A Comprehensive Guide

In Russian, the imperative mood is used to give commands, make requests, or offer advice. There are two primary forms: familiar (used with ты) and formal/plural (used with вы). The formal form is simply created by adding the suffix -те to the familiar form.

To form the imperative, you start with the present-future stem (the part of the verb you get after dropping the ending of the 3rd person plural form, e.g., они работают → работа-). The ending you add depends on the last letter of that stem and the stress pattern of the verb.

1. Imperatives ending in -й(те)

Add -й if the verb stem ends in a vowel.

• работать (rabótatʹ, “to work”) → работай(те) (rabotay(te)) — Work!
• петь (petʹ, “to sing”) → пой(те) (poy(te)) — Sing!
• построить (postróitʹ, “to build”) → построй(те) (postroy(te)) — Build!

Irregular and Special Patterns:

• Verbs like давать (davátʹ, “to give”) and its compounds keep the suffix -ва-: давай(те) (davay(te) — Give!/Let's!) or вставай(те) (vstavay(te) — Get up!).
• Monosyllabic verbs ending in -ить often change to -ей: пить (pitʹ, “to drink”) → пей(те) (pey(te) — Drink!), бить (bitʹ, “to hit”) → бей(те) (bey(te)), шить (shitʹ, “to sew”) → шей(те) (shey(te)).
• Perfective verbs of motion using -ехать (e.g., приехать) use the imperfective-style imperative: приезжай(те) (priyezzhay(te) — Come/Arrive!).

2. Imperatives ending in -и(те)

Add -и if the verb stem ends in a consonant and the 1st person singular (я form) is stressed on the ending.

• говорить (govorítʹ, “to speak”) → я говорю́ → говори(те) (govori(te)) — Speak!
• взять (vzyatʹ, “to take”) → я возьму́ → возьми(те) (vozmi(te)) — Take!
• вести (vestí, “to lead”) → я веду́ → веди(те) (vedi(te)) — Lead!
• получить (poluchítʹ, “to receive”) → я получу́ → получи(те) (poluchi(te)) — Receive!

Note: If the stem ends in two consonants, even if the stress is on the stem, -и is usually added for ease of pronunciation: помнить (pómnitʹ) → помни(те) (pomni(te) — Remember!).

3. Imperatives ending in -ь(те)

Add a soft sign (-ь) if the verb stem ends in a single consonant and the stress is always on the stem (the я form is stressed on the root).

• верить (véritʹ, “to believe”) → я ве́рю → верь(те) (verʹ(te)) — Believe!
• плакать (plákatʹ, “to weep”) → я пла́чу → плачь(те) (plachʹ(te)) — Cry/Weep!
• поставить (postávitʹ, “to put”) → я поста́влю → поставь(те) (postavʹ(te)) — Put/Place!
• жарить (zháritʹ, “to fry”) → жарь(те) (zharʹ(te)) — Fry!

Third-Person Imperatives

To say "Let him/her/them do something," use the particle пусть (pustʹ) followed by the present or future tense verb.

• Пусть она пишет. (Pustʹ ona pishit) — Let her write.
• Пусть они придут. (Pustʹ oni pridut) — Let them come.

Important Notes on Usage

• Stress: Generally, the imperative stress follows the 1st person singular: писать → пишу́ → пиши!; сказать → скажу́ → скажи!
• Missing Forms: Verbs like видеть (to see) and слышать (to hear) don't typically use imperatives. Instead, Russians use смотри! (look!) or слушай! (listen!).
• Eating: While есть (to eat) has the imperative ешь!, the word кушай! is frequently used when speaking to children or being particularly hospitable.