Affirmative and negative commands are key to giving instructions in French. They use the imperative mood, which drops subject pronouns and changes verb forms. These commands let you tell people what to do or not do directly.

Pronoun placement is crucial in commands. In affirmative ones, pronouns go after the verb with hyphens. In negative commands, they go between "ne" and the verb. Mastering this helps you communicate clearly and naturally in French.

Affirmative vs Negative Commands

Expressing Commands

Affirmative commands, also known as positive commands, tell someone to do something
- Formed using the imperative mood without including the subject pronoun
- Example: "Parle français!" (Speak French!)
Negative commands tell someone not to do something
- Formed by placing "ne" before the verb in the imperative mood and the appropriate negative word (pas, jamais, plus, etc.) after the verb
- Example: "Ne parle pas anglais!" (Don't speak English!)

Pronoun Placement in Commands

In affirmative commands, pronouns (me, te, nous, vous, le, la, les, lui, leur, y, en) are placed after the verb and connected with a hyphen
- Example: "Donne-moi le livre." (Give me the book.)
In negative commands, these pronouns are placed between "ne" and the verb
- Example: "Ne me donne pas le livre." (Don't give me the book.)

Constructing Commands in the Imperative

Forming Affirmative Commands

Use the tu, nous, or vous form of the present tense of the verb, omitting the subject pronoun
- For -er verbs, the tu form drops the final "s" in the command form
  - Example: "Parler" (to speak) becomes "Parle!" (Speak!) in the tu form
Irregular verbs like être, avoir, savoir, and vouloir have unique imperative forms that need to be memorized
- Example: "Être" (to be) becomes "Sois!" (Be!) in the tu form

Forming Negative Commands

Place "ne" before the verb and the appropriate negative word (pas, jamais, plus, etc.) after the verb
- The negative word "pas" is the most commonly used
- Example: "Ne mange pas!" (Don't eat!)
When using reflexive verbs in the imperative mood, the reflexive pronoun (me, te, nous, vous, se) is placed after the verb in affirmative commands and before the verb in negative commands
- Example: "Lève-toi!" (Get up!) and "Ne te lève pas!" (Don't get up!)

Pronoun and Word Order in Commands

Pronoun Placement in Affirmative Commands

Object pronouns (me, te, le, la, les, nous, vous, leur) and adverbial pronouns (y, en) are placed after the verb and connected with a hyphen
- Example: "Donne-le-moi!" (Give it to me!)
When using two pronouns in a command, the order is as follows: me/te/nous/vous + le/la/les + lui/leur + y + en
- Example: "Donne-le-lui!" (Give it to him/her!)

Pronoun Placement in Negative Commands

Object and adverbial pronouns are placed between "ne" and the verb, following the usual order: ne + me/te/nous/vous + le/la/les + lui/leur + y + en + verb + negative word
- Example: "Ne me le donne pas!" (Don't give it to me!)
When using the passé composé in commands, the pronouns are placed between the auxiliary verb (avoir or être) and the past participle in affirmative commands, and between "ne" and the auxiliary verb in negative commands
- Example: "Donne-le-moi maintenant!" (Give it to me now!) and "Ne me l'aie pas donné hier!" (Don't have given it to me yesterday!)