Negative command forms in Spanish! What our moms loved to use with us!

Upset bunny after being told off!
Courtesy Lorraine C. Ladish

We’ve all been through it. When we were kids, either our moms, or our dads were on our cases for one reason or another. Often using the positive command form or the negative. The negative form is the subjunctive, we all love so much!

The negative command form in Spanish is very easy. The Usted form is the same as the positive command form. Tú does change though:

Verbos regulares

	Hablar	Beber	Abrir
Tú	hables	bebas	abras
Usted	hable	beba	abra

Verbos Irregulares con diptongación

	Cerrar	Encender	Pedir
Tú	cierres	enciendas	pidas
Usted	cierre	encienda	pida

Verbos súper irregulares

	Poner	Venir	Ir	Hacer	Decir	Tener
Tú	No pongas	No vengas	No vayas	No hagas	No digas	No tengas
Usted	No ponga	No venga	No vaya	No haga	No diga	No tenga

Following is a very funny U-tube video where you will hear a mom tell her son off. Can you understand and pick out the command forms?

Note: Argentina has its own command form!