Spanish Grammar Explained /
Imperative with direct and indirect complement
The imperativo is used a lot in all Spanish speaking countries. It is a very efficient verb tense because you can be very specific using just one word.
Levántate.
Stand up.
Siéntese.
Sit down (you, formal).
Hazte la maleta.
Pack your suitcase.
Formation:
| Imperativo AR→ habla, hable, hablen ER → come, coma, coman IR → vive, viva, vivan | + | me te le > se nos os les > se | lo la los las |
|---|
Hábleme.
Talk to me (formal).
Cómaselo.
Eat it (formal).
Escríbele.
Write him/her.
The blue particles refer to the object. We can include the object as well and create the most efficient word ever!
| Cómete el plátano. | → | Cómetelo. |
| Escríbele una postal. | → | Escríbesela. |
| Cómprame las infusiones. | → | Cómpramelas. |
Don't forget to change le/les → se when the direct and indirect objects appear together: "envíaselo", "dáselo".
This "efficiency" also works when we use infinitivo or gerundio:
"Quiero comprarle esta camiseta".
"Estoy enseñándole el departamento".
The tilde are just a mark of intonation. We will work on them later on, so don't worry!