The imperative ("do it!") is built from the jussive present. Fusha has five forms: to a man, a woman, two people, a group of men and a group of women.
Making the imperative
Take the jussive for anta, anti and so on, drop the ta- prefix, and add a helping vowel at the front if the stem starts with two consonants. The helping vowel is u- when the stem vowel is u, and i- otherwise.
| Verb | To a man | To a woman | To two | To a group (m) | To a group (f) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| write (taktubu) | اكتبْ uktub | اكتبي uktubii | اكتبا uktubaa | اكتبوا uktubuu | اكتبْنَ uktubna |
| drink (tashrabu) | اشربْ ishrab | اشربي ishrabii | اشربا ishrabaa | اشربوا ishrabuu | اشربْنَ ishrabna |
| sit (tajlisu) | اجلسْ ijlis | اجلسي ijlisii | اجلسا ijlisaa | اجلسوا ijlisuu | اجلسْنَ ijlisna |
- اكتبْ اسمَكَ هناuktub ismaka hunaaWrite your name here. (to a man)
- انظري إلى هذاunzurii ilaa haadhaLook at this. (to a woman)
- انتظروا قليلاًintaziruu qaliilanWait a little. (to a group)
Derived forms and weak verbs
Form II and III stems start with a consonant + vowel, so no helping vowel is needed:
- علّمْ / ساعدْ3allim / saa3idteach! / help!
Hollow verbs shorten their long vowel in the masculine singular: qul (say!), qulii (to a woman).
Form IV
Form IV imperatives start with a-: a3ti (give!), arsil (send!), as in arsil ar-risaalata (send the letter).
Don't…
A negative command uses laa + the jussive:
- لا تكتبْlaa taktubDon't write. (to a man)
- لا تنسَيْlaa tansayDon't forget. (to a woman)
- لا تتأخرواlaa tata2akhkharuuDon't be late. (to a group)