Catalan uses first-person plural commands for “let's”: comencem “let's start,” no ens precipitem “let's not rush,” anem-nos-en “let's leave.” Catalan grammars include this value in the imperative paradigm, and its form is always identical to the first-person plural present subjunctive. The function is imperative; the form is shared with the subjunctive.
That origin makes sense: the speaker is not commanding an outside addressee but proposing that a not-yet-real action become true for a group that includes the speaker. Depending on context, however, the same form can sound like a friendly proposal, an urgent rallying cry, or a manager's tactful order.
Forming the nosaltres command
Use the first-person plural of the present subjunctive. For many verbs it looks identical to the first-person plural present indicative, but its directive meaning comes from the clause and the situation.
| Infinitive | Class or pattern | First-plural command |
|---|---|---|
| parlar | first conjugation | parlem |
| perdre | second conjugation | perdem |
| dormir | third conjugation, pure | dormim |
| servir | third conjugation, incoative | servim |
| ser | irregular | siguem |
| estar | velar stem | estiguem |
| anar | irregular | anem |
| fer | irregular | fem |
| dir | velar stem | diguem |
| tenir | velar stem | tinguem |
| venir | velar stem | vinguem |
| poder | velar stem | puguem |
The regular forms parlem, perdem, dormim, and servim are also ordinary present-indicative forms. Compare Parlem cada setmana “We talk every week” with Parlem-ne demà “Let's talk about it tomorrow.” English marks the proposal with let's; Catalan can let verb position, intonation, and context do the work.
Comencem per les preguntes més fàcils.
Let's start with the easiest questions.
Siguem realistes: avui no ho acabarem tot.
Let's be realistic: we won't finish everything today.
Diguem-li la veritat abans que se n'assabenti per algú altre.
Let's tell her the truth before she hears it from someone else.
Proposals, invitations, and rallying cries
The most genuinely inclusive use proposes joint action. A question mark makes the proposal more negotiable: Comencem? asks for agreement, whereas Comencem. moves the group into action. Adding va or vinga produces encouragement and is common (informal) speech.
Fem una pausa de deu minuts?
Shall we take a ten-minute break?
Va, acabem això i després anem a sopar.
Come on, let's finish this and then go have dinner. (informal)
Som-hi, posem-nos a treballar.
Come on, let's get to work.
Vinga is a widespread conversational prompt throughout the Catalan-speaking area, not a specifically Valencian form. Va and som-hi are also frequent in Central Catalan. They strengthen the invitation; they do not change the verb's person or mood.
Inclusive wording can still exert pressure
Grammatical nosaltres does not guarantee equal participation. A chair saying Passem al punt següent may be organizing the meeting rather than asking each participant for permission. A public appeal such as Protegim els boscos includes the audience rhetorically, while the institutional author may not be performing the same concrete action at that moment.
Passem ara al segon punt de l'ordre del dia.
Let's now move to the second item on the agenda. (formal meeting language)
Mantinguem els accessos lliures en tot moment.
Let us keep the access routes clear at all times. (formal)
No dramatitzem: encara tenim temps de trobar una solució.
Let's not dramatize things; we still have time to find a solution.
The first example is procedurally directive; the second is an institutional appeal; the third manages the emotional stance of a conversation. English let's can be equally coercive, but English speakers sometimes assume that every first-plural form is a warm suggestion. Tone, authority, and the real distribution of action decide the force.
Weak pronouns: affirmative after, negative before
Affirmative first-plural commands attach weak pronouns after the verb. Negative ones put them before it, just like other imperatives.
| Affirmative | Negative | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| fem-ho | no ho fem | let's do it / let's not do it |
| parlem-ne | no en parlem | let's talk about it / let's not talk about it |
| posem-nos-hi | no ens hi posem | let's get to it / let's not start on it |
| anem-nos-en | no ens n'anem | let's leave / let's not leave |
Parlem-ne quan hàgim vist totes les dades.
Let's talk about it once we've seen all the data.
No ens hi posem ara, que només tenim cinc minuts.
Let's not start on it now; we only have five minutes.
The general written form is anem-nos-en. Reductions such as anem's-en occur (informal) in speech-like writing. Anem-se'n is widespread in casual speech but is not the careful standard form, because se replaces the first-person plural pronoun nos.
For the spelling and ordering of larger clusters, see weak pronouns with affirmative commands.
There is also an important contrast between a command and a question built from the indicative: Anem-nos-en! explicitly urges departure; Ens n'anem? asks “Shall we leave?” and therefore keeps the pronouns before the finite verb.
The special behavior of anem
Anem! can literally mean “Let's go!” It can also work as an (informal) discourse marker meaning “come on,” “well,” or “let's see,” with much of its motion meaning bleached.
Anem, explica-m'ho des del principi.
Come on, explain it to me from the beginning. (informal)
Anem a veure què diu el contracte abans de signar-lo.
Let's see what the contract says before signing it.
Do not confuse present anem a parlar with the periphrastic past. Anem a parlar amb la directora can mean “let's go talk to the head teacher” with literal movement, or it can mark an immediate transition to the proposed action; it is not a general future tense. The completed past uses the special past auxiliary: vam parlar amb la directora “we spoke to the head teacher.” The presence or absence of a, the form anem/vam, and the discourse context distinguish the constructions.
Mini-dialogue
—Ja tenim totes les propostes. Les votem? —Sí, però primer aclarim el pressupost.
—We have all the proposals now. Shall we vote on them? —Yes, but let's clarify the budget first.
—D'acord. No ens allarguem gaire, que a les sis hem d'haver acabat.
—All right. Let's not take too long; we need to be finished by six.
The question Les votem? invites assent. Aclarim then redirects the sequence, and negative no ens allarguem establishes a shared limit. None of these forms describes an established fact; all organize a possible next step.
Common Mistakes
1. Copying English let as a separate verb.
❌ Deixem nosaltres començar ara.
Incorrect for let's start — deixar means allow, not the English hortative marker.
✅ Comencem ara.
Let's start now.
2. Using the indicative irregular stem instead of the subjunctive form.
❌ Som prudents i no diguem res encara.
Incorrect as an exhortation — som asserts that we are prudent.
✅ Siguem prudents i no diguem res encara.
Let's be prudent and not say anything yet.
3. Putting pronouns before an affirmative command.
❌ Ens posem-hi de seguida.
Incorrect — an affirmative command takes postverbal pronouns.
✅ Posem-nos-hi de seguida.
Let's get to it right away.
4. Putting pronouns after a negative command.
❌ No anem-nos-en sense avisar.
Incorrect — negative commands take preverbal pronouns.
✅ No ens n'anem sense avisar.
Let's not leave without telling anyone.
5. Reading anem a + infinitive as a completed past.
❌ Ahir anem a revisar els plànols.
Incorrect for a completed event yesterday.
✅ Ahir vam revisar els plànols.
Yesterday we reviewed the plans.
Key Takeaways
The Catalan “let's” form is the first-person plural present subjunctive used with directive force. Questions make proposals negotiable; imperatives mobilize the group; institutional first plurals may include the audience rhetorically. Attach pronouns after affirmative forms, move them before negative forms, and keep present anem a + infinitive distinct from the past auxiliary vam + infinitive.
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