Formation of the Imperative
Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds
The Amharic imperative is formed by modifying the stem of the verb to match the gender and number of the person being addressed.
- Use the masculine singular form for a male: 'ነገር' (Neger - Tell!)
- Use the feminine singular form for a female: 'ነግሪ' (Negri - Tell!)
- Use the plural form for groups: 'ንገሩ' (Negeru - Tell!)
Imperative Conjugation Table
| Verb (Root) | Masculine | Feminine | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|
|
መሄድ (Go)
|
ሂድ
|
ሂጂ
|
ሂዱ
|
|
መብላት (Eat)
|
ብላ
|
ብዪ
|
ብሉ
|
|
መጠጣት (Drink)
|
ጠጣ
|
ጠጪ
|
ጠጡ
|
|
መጻፍ (Write)
|
ጻፍ
|
ጻፊ
|
ጻፉ
|
|
መቀመጥ (Sit)
|
ተቀመጥ
|
ተቀመጪ
|
ተቀመጡ
|
|
መነሳት (Stand)
|
ተነሳ
|
ተነሺ
|
ተነሱ
|
Meanings
The imperative mood is used to give direct orders, instructions, or advice to someone.
Direct Command
An immediate instruction to perform an action.
“ኑ (Nu - Come!)”
“ሂድ (Hid - Go!)”
Reference Table
| Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Affirmative (M)
|
Root
|
ሂድ
|
|
Affirmative (F)
|
Root + i
|
ሂጂ
|
|
Affirmative (Pl)
|
Root + u
|
ሂዱ
|
|
Negative (M)
|
at + Root
|
አትሂድ
|
|
Negative (F)
|
at + Root + i
|
አትሂጂ
|
|
Negative (Pl)
|
at + Root + u
|
አትሂዱ
|
Formalitätsspektrum
እባክዎ ይምጡ (Calling someone)
ና (Calling someone)
ና እስቲ (Calling someone)
ና (Calling someone)
Imperative Target Map
Target
- ወንድ Male
- ሴት Female
- ብዙ Plural
Beispiele nach Niveau
ሂድ
Go!
ብላ
Eat!
ጠጣ
Drink!
ተኛ
Sleep!
ውሃ አትጠጪ
Don't drink water!
ወደ ቤት ሂዱ
Go home (plural)!
መጽሐፉን አንብቢ
Read the book (female)!
እባክህ ተቀመጥ
Please sit (male)!
በፍጥነት ጻፉ
Write quickly (plural)!
አትጩኹ
Don't shout (plural)!
እባክሽ ተነሺ
Please stand up (female)!
አትሂድ
Don't go (male)!
ስራሽን በደንብ ስሪ
Do your work well (female)!
አትጨነቁ
Don't worry (plural)!
በሩን ክፈቱ
Open the door (plural)!
እባክህ አትዘግይ
Please don't be late (male)!
ሁላችሁም ዝም በሉ
Everyone be quiet (plural)!
አትሳሳቱ
Don't make mistakes (plural)!
እባክሽ ቶሎ ነይ
Please come quickly (female)!
አትናገሪ
Don't speak (female)!
በጥንቃቄ አሽከርክሩ
Drive carefully (plural)!
አትፍሩ
Don't be afraid (plural)!
እባክህ ተረጋጋ
Please calm down (male)!
አትጠራጠሪ
Don't doubt (female)!
Leicht verwechselbar
Both express a desire for action, but Jussive is for 3rd person or polite requests.
Learners often default to masculine.
Learners forget to add '-u' for groups.
Häufige Fehler
ሂድ (to woman)
ሂጂ
ሂድ (to group)
ሂዱ
አትሂድ (to woman)
አትሂጂ
መሄድ (as command)
ሂድ
ብላ (to woman)
ብዪ
አትጠጣ (to group)
አትጠጡ
ጻፍ (to woman)
ጻፊ
ተቀመጥ (to woman)
ተቀመጪ
አትነሳ (to group)
አትነሱ
አትጻፍ (to woman)
አትጻፊ
አትናገር (to woman)
አትናገሪ
አትሳሳት (to group)
አትሳሳቱ
አትፍራ (to woman)
አትፈሪ
Satzmuster
___ (verb)!
___ (verb)!
___ (verb)!
አት___ (verb)!
Real World Usage
ና!
ጻፉ!
ስራ!
ሂድ!
አምጡ!
ተመልከቱ!
Gender Check
Politeness
Plural Rule
Context Matters
Smart Tips
Always add '-i' to the stem.
Always add '-u' to the stem.
Add 'at-' to the start.
Use the plural form to be safe.
Aussprache
Suffix stress
The stress often shifts to the suffix in the plural form.
Command
ሂድ! ↘
Falling intonation indicates a firm command.
Einprägen
Eselsbrücke
Remember 'I' for 'I' (female) and 'U' for 'U' (plural).
Visuelle Assoziation
Imagine a teacher pointing at a boy (base), a girl (adding an 'i' ring), and a group (adding a 'u' umbrella).
Rhyme
For the girl add an i, for the group add a u, that's what you do!
Story
A mother tells her son 'ሂድ' (Go), her daughter 'ሂጂ' (Go), and all her children 'ሂዱ' (Go). They all listen because she is the boss.
Word Web
Herausforderung
Write three commands for your imaginary friends: one male, one female, one group.
Kulturelle Hinweise
Commands are rarely used with elders; polite forms are mandatory.
Friends often use shortened forms.
Direct commands are more common among peers.
The Amharic imperative stems from Proto-Semitic root structures.
Gesprächseinstiege
ጓደኛህን ምን ትለዋለህ?
ለሴት ልጅ ምን ትላለህ?
ለቡድን ምን ትላለህ?
አትሂድ ስትል ምን ማለት ነው?
Tagebuch-Impulse
Häufige Fehler
Test Yourself
___ (Go)!
___ (Write)!
Find and fix the mistake:
ሂድ (to a group)
ሂድ -> ?
Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:
___
___ (Drink) water!
___ (Don't go)!
Score: /8
Ubungsaufgaben
8 exercises___ (Go)!
___ (Write)!
Find and fix the mistake:
ሂድ (to a group)
ሂድ -> ?
ሂድ, ሂጂ, ሂዱ
___
___ (Drink) water!
___ (Don't go)!
Score: /8
FAQ (8)
Amharic is a gendered language; verbs must agree with the listener.
No, it is grammatically incorrect and can be rude.
Use the jussive or honorific forms instead of the imperative.
Yes, 'at-' is the standard negative prefix for commands.
The direct imperative is usually fine.
Yes, some verbs like 'to eat' have irregular stems.
Use the polite plural or honorific forms.
Yes, in instructions or manuals.
Scaffolded Practice
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Mastery Progress
Needs Practice
Improving
Strong
Mastered
In Other Languages
Imperativo
Amharic is gender-specific for singular.
Impératif
Amharic adds gender to the singular.
Imperativ
Amharic is more morphologically complex.
Meireikei
Japanese is not gendered.
Amr
Amharic has specific Amharic-only suffixes.
Imperative
Chinese verbs do not change.
