Part 2: Verbs
Imperative mood
Examples
Sit down!
Wait!
Let’s go!
Let d be distance.
Definition
The imperative, or command form of the verb, is used to tell the listener or reader to do or imagine something.
Discovery
Form
The imperative is generally the bare infinitive of the verb: do your homework! eat your greens! get dressed!
The negative imperative is formed with don’t (or, less commonly, do not) plus the bare infinitive (don’t forget! don’t talk with your mouth full! do not forget your homework!).
We also use let for some commands:
to include the speaker in the action (let’s eat! = we will eat now)
to define a term in mathematics or physics (let AB represent a line connecting A and B)
Function
Imperatives are most likely to be found in texts that Narrate, especially in dialogue. However, they occur in nonfiction texts that Explain or Inform in an attempt to engage the reader (e.g., imagine a puck sliding across the ice). In texts that Argue, an imperative could be a call to action (stop polluting the oceans! let’s make our school more inclusive!), but often this is too direct, and other rhetorical devices are used. For example:
Modal and semi-modal verbs: We must reduce our use of fossil fuels.
Adjectives and nouns that express modality: It is essential to …
As noted above, there is a technical use of imperatives in math and science in order to define a letter or variable (e.g., let n be the number of students in a class).
Exercises
