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Imperatives & Plurals
Oi! Tudo bom?
In my Portuguese class, they taught us the "correct" way to form the imperative form of verbs. For example we were taught to say "Mande-me uma carta." However, when I hear Brazilians speaking to each other, they say things like "Me manda uma carta." Is this alternate form (Me manda) in place of the "correct" form (Mande-me) considered OK, or does it make the speaker sound uneducated? I know there is a huge difference between using language that makes the speaker sound "streetsmart" versus using language that makes the speaker sound "stupid," so I'm relying on you for "the real story" here.
Also, on the same topic of imperatives, how is the negative formed? For example the "correct" way would be "Nao me mande uma carta." Would the alternate way be "Nao me manda uma carta" if you mean "Don't send me a letter"?
My last question has to do with formation of plurals. I understand that it's quite common in Brazil to hear things like "os carro" or "as escola" in place of "os carros" and "as escolas." Is this becoming an "Acceptable" speech pattern, or is this an example of the speaker sounding uneducated?
Valeu pela tua ajuda!
David :-)
Great questions, David. Obrigada.
I agree completely with Professora Renata’s answers, and would like to add a few points.
Regarding the plural, sometimes people break the grammar because they don’t have school education and other times they break the grammar because of regional habits. In my opinion, you should always use the plural correctly. Saying “os carro” or “dois chop” does not sound more colloquial or street smart. We respect that some regions in Brazil have the habit of speaking like this, but I recommend sticking to the right way of saying it.
About the imperative, a few things to keep in mind:
1. The affirmative imperative comes from the present subjunctive, except for “tu” and “vós.
2. For “tu” and “vós”, the affirmative imperative comes from the present indicative without the final “s” or “es” ”. Don’t worry about “vós” as we don’t use it.
3. In the affirmative imperative, you will hear the forms for “você” e “tu” interchangeably. Both are perfectly correct. I personally don’t see one as more street smart than the other. For example:
- Me diz uma coisa. (tu --> commonly used in the affirmative imperative)
- Me diga um coisa. (você)
- Me manda uma carta. (tu)
- Me mande uma carta (você)
4. The negative imperative comes completely from the present subjunctive. In this tense, the “tu” form is not commonly used and would sound formal. Except, maybe, in the south of Brazil where they use “tu” more often.
- Não me digas isso. (tu --> not commonly used)
- Não me diga isso. (você)
- Não me mandes uma carta. (tu)
- Não me mande uma carta. (você)
For example:
Verbo Mandar
| Presente do Indicativo | Presente do Subjuntivo | Imperativo Afirmativo | Imperativo Negativo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eu mando | Que eu mande | --- | --- |
| Tu mandas | Que tu mandes | Manda | Não mandes |
| Você manda | Que você mande | Mande | Não mande |
| Nós mandamos | Que nós mandemos | Mandemos | Não mandemos |
| Vocês mandam | Que vocês mandem | Mandem | Não mandem |
5. As Professora Renata said, the grammar says that we should not start sentences with the pronomes oblíquos, but we do that all the time in spoken Portuguese in Brazil. I agree with Renata. Saying “me liga” is way more street smart than saying “liga-me” (this would actually sound weird.)
Obrigada for posting your questions here!
Oi, Amigas!
Muito obrigado pelas suas respostas! Vcs me ajudaram muito.
Espero que vcs tenham um bom fim de semana!
David :-)
Foi um prazer, David!
Fique à vontade para fazer outras perguntas.
obrigada,
Renata
Oi David,
Renata Barboza-Murray