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The Future Tense, the Imperative Mood, and Exclamations

Noi Commands by Ronald Glenn Wrigley

In the noi form, the commands take on the meaning of the English “Let's …” Andiamo! means “Let's go!”; Non parliamo! means “Let's not talk!” The spelling of the noi commands — both affirmative and negative — is the same as the spelling of their corresponding present tense forms.

Table 13-17

Noi Commands

-are verbs	-ere verbs	-ire verbs
Andiamo!	Prendiamo!	Dormiamo!

Repeat each sentence after it is read by the narrator to practice your pronunciation.

Guardiamo un bel film!	Let's watch a nice movie!
Non andiamo in macchina, andiamo in treno!	Let's not go by car, let's go by train!
Scriviamo una lettera ai nonni!	Let's write a letter to our grandparents!
Offriamo un caffè al signore!	Let's offer a coffee for the gentleman!

Please note that the Lei, noi, and Loro imperative forms look identical to the conjugations of the present tense of the subjunctive mood. For more on the subjunctive, see Chapter 15.

Object and Reflexive Pronouns with Commands</h2> <p>As you learned, object pronouns generally precede the verb:</p> <table width="100%" frame="all"> <h2> <tgroup cols="2"> <colspec colname="col1" colnum="1"/> <colspec colname="col2" colnum="2"/> <tbody> <tr> <td><p><B>Non ti capisco.</B></p></td> <td><p><B>I don't understand you.</B></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><B>Vi abbiamo visti a teatro.</B></p></td> <td><p><B>We saw you at the theater.</B></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><B>I ragazzi si svegliano tardi.</B></p></td> <td><p><B>The kids wake up late.</B></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><B>Non la mangio.</B></p></td> <td><p><B>I'm not eating it.</B></p></td> </tr> </tbody> </tgroup> </table> <p>The rules governing the placement of object and reflexive pronouns with the imperative forms in Italian are a bit more complicated. In Italian, all object pronouns attach to the end of the <B>tu</B>, <B>noi</B>, and <B>voi</B> imperative forms and precede the <B>Lei</B> and <B>Loro</B> forms. The only exceptions are the indirect object pronouns <B>loro</B> and <B>Loro</B>, which always follow the verb.</p> <table width="100%" frame="all"> <tgroup cols="2"> <colspec colname="col1" colnum="1"/> <colspec colname="col2" colnum="2"/> <tbody> <tr> <td><p><B>Mangialo!</B></p></td> <td><p><B>Eat it!</B></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><B>Leggetela!</B></p></td> <td><p><B>Read it!</B></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><B>Svegliati!</B></p></td> <td><p><B>Wake up!</B></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><B>Lo chiami! (you, singular, formal)</B></p></td> <td><p><B>Call him!</B></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><B>Le mangino! (you, plural, formal)</B></p></td> <td><p><B>Eat them!</B></p></td> </tr> </tbody> </tgroup> </table> <p>When a command is used that only has one syllable (<B>Da'!, Di'!, Fa'!</B>), the first consonant of the object or reflexive pronoun is doubled (except when <B>gli</B> is used).</p> <table width="100%" frame="all"> <tgroup cols="2"> <colspec colname="col1" colnum="1"/> <colspec colname="col2" colnum="2"/> <tbody> <tr> <td><p><B>Dammi un po' di vino!</B></p></td> <td><p><B>Give me some wine!</B></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><B>Fatti un caffè!</B></p></td> <td><p><B>Make yourself a coffee!</B></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><B>Digli la verità!</B></p></td> <td><p><B>Tell him the truth!</B></p></td> </tr> </tbody> </tgroup> </table> <p>When using the negative <B>tu</B>, <B>noi</B>, and <B>voi</B> commands, object and reflexive pronouns may be placed either before or after the command.</p> <p><B>Non lo fare!</B> OR <B>Non farlo!</B></p> <p><B>Non le parliamo!</B> OR <B>Non parliamole!</B></p> <p><B>Non vi alzate!</B> OR <B>Non alzatevi!</B></p> <title>Exercise 13-5</h2> <p>Rewrite the commands substituting a pronoun (direct object or indirect object) for the object.</p> <ul> <li><p><B>Mangia il pane!_________________________________________</B></p></li> <li><p><B>Leggete la rivista!_________________________________________</B></p></li> <li><p><B>Da un po' di vino a me!_________________________________________</B></p></li> <li><p><B>Di' la verità a tuo padre!_________________________________________</B></p></li> <li><p><B>Non fare il compito! _________________________________________</B></p></li> <li><p><B>Non parliamo a Maria!_________________________________________</B></p></li> </ul>  <div id="pagination"><ul><li class="prev"><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/learning-italian/the-future-tense-the-imperative-mood-and-exclamations/lei-and-loro-commands.htm" title="Lei and Loro Commands">Lei and Loro Commands</a></li><li class="next"><a 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