12.1 Usted and Ustedes Formal Commands

Flashcards covering the formation, usage, irregulars, and spelling changes of Spanish formal (usted and ustedes) commands based on the lecture notes.

Command forms (Usted and Ustedes)

Verbs used to give orders or advice in formal situations or when referring to a group of people.

Formation of formal commands

Drop the final -o of the present tense yo form. For -ar verbs, add -e or -en. For -er and -ir verbs, add -a or -an.

Irregular present yo forms in commands

Verbs with irregular yo forms like conducir, conocer, decir, hacer, ofrecer, oír, poner, salir, tener, traducir, traer, venir, and ver maintain that same irregularity in their formal commands.

Stem-changing verbs in commands

Verbs with e:ie, o:ue, or e:i stem changes maintain these changes in their usted and ustedes command forms (e.g., vuelva, sirva, cierre).

Spelling change: -car verbs

The consonant sound change c becomes qu (e.g., sacar becomes saque, saquen).

Spelling change: -gar verbs

The consonant sound change g becomes gu (e.g., jugar becomes juegue, jueguen).

Spelling change: -zar verbs

The consonant sound change z becomes c (e.g., almorzar becomes almuerce, almuercen).

Irregular formal command: dar

The Ud. command is dé and the Uds. command is den.

Irregular formal command: estar

The Ud. command is esté and the Uds. command is estén.

Irregular formal command: ir

The Ud. command is vaya and the Uds. command is vayan.

Irregular formal command: saber

The Ud. command is sepa and the Uds. command is sepan.

Irregular formal command: ser

The Ud. command is sea and the Uds. command is sean.

Negative formal commands

Formed by placing "no" before the command verb; pronouns must precede the verb in this form.

Affirmative command pronoun placement

Reflexive and object pronouns are attached to the end of the verb; an accent mark is added if the verb has two or more syllables (e.g., Dígamelo).

Polite use of Usted and Ustedes

The subject pronouns can be placed after the command form to achieve a more formal, polite tone (e.g., Tomen ustedes esta alcoba).