Forme → i/ie bleibt: nimm, lies, sieh; a → ä fällt weg: fahr, schlaf
Meaning and usage
Verbs that change e to i or ie in the present keep that change in the du command: du nimmst gives Nimm!, du liest gives Lies!, du siehst gives Sieh!. Verbs that change a to ä drop the umlaut in the command: du fährst but Fahr!, du schläfst but Schlaf!
The command has no ending and no du. English speakers often keep the present form, as in Nimmst das Buch!, or carry the umlaut into the command, as in Fähr langsam!. Both are wrong.
Examples 6
Nimm dir doch ein paar Tage frei!
Why not take a few days off?
Wasch dir das Gesicht und die Hände!
Wash your face and hands.
Gib dich nicht mit bösen Männern ab.
Don't associate with evil men.
Nimm's dir nicht so zu Herzen.
Don't take it to heart.
Sieh sie dir an. Sie ist wunderschön.
Look at her. She's beautiful.
Nimm es nicht in die Liste auf!
Leave it off the list.
Test yourself
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1 Sprachbausteine
mir bitte das Buch!
Show answer
Correct answer: Gib
The verb geben has an e in the stem, which changes to i in the du-command. The correct form is Gib, without the ending -st and without the pronoun du.
- Geb keeps the original e and is not a German command form.
- Gibst is the present du-form and cannot be used as a command.
- Gebe is the ich form of the present, not a command.
In this topic: Imperative
- Komm! Mach das! du command: verb stem, no du, no -st
- Kommt! Macht das! Command to a group you address as ihr
- Kommen Sie! Formal command: verb first, then Sie
- Nimm! Lies! Fahr! du-command with e→i or e→ie vowel change
- Sei! Seid! Seien Sie! Commands with sein: be
- bitte, mal, doch Softens a command: please, a moment, why not
- Gehen wir! Let's do something together
Example sentences from Tatoeba, used under CC BY 2.0 FR. See sources.