Chapter 3: Grammar
The imperative case is what is used to express a command. Generally, the imperative is used differently depending on the situation such as formal or informal and whether one is talking to one person or a group of people.
To employ the imperative case, you will need to use verbs. If you are using a long-stem verb and you are talking to one person, you have to change the verb to the short form. If you are talking to a group of people, the verb retains its long form. Below is an example
Parl twa! Speak!
Parlé vou! Speak!
To negate the imperative case, you would have to follow the rules of negation, that were previously discussed in the negation lesson. Below are some examples.
Parl pa ak yé Don’t speak with them
Pa Parlé ak yé Don’t speak with them
The verb dèt, just like other verbs, can be employed in the imperative case. However, there are two different ways in which one might encounter the verb. For some speakers it is common to use swa which is a conjugated form of the verb. For others, they might employ the verb dèt in its pure form. Below are two examples of the English sentence ‘Be in your community.’
Dèt dan tô kominoté
Swa dan tô kominoté