Der Imperativ
Back in Lesson 17 you saw "Gehen Sie geradeaus" without an explanation - that's the imperative, German's command form. You'll hear it constantly: instructions at the Bürgeramt, recipe steps, doctor's orders, transit announcements.
This is the easiest of the three forms, and the one you'll use most as a beginner speaking to strangers or officials. Take the normal Sie-conjugation and put the verb first - exactly like a yes/no question (Lesson 5), just read as an instruction instead:
Kommen Sie bitte! (Please come!)
Gehen Sie geradeaus. (Go straight ahead.)
Take the du-form and remove -st; the final -e is often dropped too in casual speech:
| du kommst | → | Komm! |
| du gehst | → | Geh! |
Full reference including the ihr-form: Reference - Imperative.
Adding bitte ("please") is the standard move to make any command polite rather than blunt - it's used more often than not in real German requests.
Warten Sie bitte einen Moment. (Please wait a moment.)
1. "Please come!" (Sie-form) - ______ Sie bitte!
2. du-imperative of "kommen" (drop -st).
3. "Go straight ahead." (Sie-form) - ______ Sie geradeaus.
4. Which word softens a command into a polite request?
5. Which imperative word order matches a yes/no question?
Cross-checked against the Goethe-Institut A1 practice materials.
Unsure how to form the imperative of a specific verb? Ask your teaching agent.