Catalan speakers give instructions with imperatives every day, and an imperative is not automatically rude. Passa, passa can be a warm invitation, while Seu! can sound sharp. The social force comes from the relationship, the form of address, intonation, mitigating words, and whether the speaker presents the action as an order, a request, or a shared practical step.
English often relies on please and modal questions such as “could you...?” Catalan has direct equivalents, but it also uses friendly imperatives more freely. The goal is not to avoid commands; it is to match the grammar to the situation.
One action, several levels of force
The following choices can all ask someone to close a door. They do not sound identical.
| Form | Typical force | Register and context |
|---|---|---|
| Tanca la porta. | direct instruction | neutral with family, colleagues, or an obvious practical reason |
| Tanca la porta, si us plau. | polite direct request | general across spoken and written registers |
| Pots tancar la porta? | request framed as ability | very common in everyday conversation |
| Podries tancar la porta? | more tentative request | polite; useful when imposing on someone |
| Li faria res tancar la porta? | deferential request | (formal) |
| Cal mantenir la porta tancada. | impersonal requirement | (formal), institutional |
Tanca la finestra, si us plau, que entra molt de soroll.
Close the window, please; a lot of noise is coming in.
Em podries enviar la factura abans de divendres?
Could you send me the invoice before Friday?
Li faria res esperar-se cinc minuts?
Would you mind waiting five minutes? (formal)
The conditional in podries or faria creates distance from the desired act. It does not move the request into past time. That distance makes refusal feel more available and therefore softens the imposition. The present pots...? is still perfectly polite in ordinary conversation; piling up conditionals can sound ceremonious among close friends.
Match the command to the addressee
The verb shows whom the speaker is addressing. With regular parlar, the affirmative forms are:
| Address | Form | Use |
|---|---|---|
| tu | parla | one familiar person |
| vostè | parli | one person, (formal); third-person agreement |
| nosaltres | parlem | speaker plus others: “let's talk” |
| vosaltres | parleu | several familiar people |
| vós | parleu | one person, (formal) or traditional; second-person plural agreement |
| vostès | parlin | several people, (formal); third-person plural agreement |
The same contrast appears in irregular verbs: seu (tu), segui (vostè), seieu (vosaltres or vós), seguin (vostès). Vostè and vostès refer to the listener but trigger third-person grammar, including weak pronouns and possessives. Vós refers to one listener but takes second-person plural grammar.
Segui aquí, senyora Puig; ara l'atendran.
Sit here, Ms Puig; they will see you shortly. (formal)
Passeu, doctor, i deixeu l'abric aquí.
Come in, doctor, and leave your coat here. (formal vós)
Passeu, nois, que el sopar ja és a taula.
Come in, everyone; dinner is already on the table. (informal plural)
Forms of address vary by relationship and community. Tu is widespread, but professional conventions are not identical everywhere. Vostè is general (formal) Catalan; vós remains visible in institutional language and in some speakers' usage. In (regional: Valencian), vosté/vostés are the standard spellings, with the same third-person agreement. The choice should be consistent through the sentence.
Si us plau, sisplau, and other softeners
Si us plau is the general expression for “please” and can be used regardless of whether the addressee is tu, vós, vostè, vosaltres, or vostès. Its us is historically tied to vós, but the expression is now a conventional courtesy marker.
Deixa'm acabar, si us plau, i després en parlem.
Let me finish, please, and then we'll talk about it.
No toqueu les obres, si us plau.
Please don't touch the works.
The separated spelling si us plau is the normative choice, especially (formal) writing. Sisplau is frequent (informal) spelling that mirrors ordinary pronunciation; siusplau is not the accepted agglutinated form. Per favor is also correct and particularly common (regional: Valencian), though it is understood throughout the language area.
Other mitigators can be more important than “please”: quan puguis “when you can,” un moment “for a moment,” si no et fa res “if you don't mind,” or a reason introduced by que.
Quan puguis, mira't el pressupost i digues-me què en penses.
When you can, look over the estimate and tell me what you think.
Baixeu una mica la veu, que el nen dorm.
Keep your voices down a little; the child is asleep.
Intonation and repetition
A falling, emphatic contour can make a short imperative abrupt: Vine! “Come!” A gentler contour, a name, a softening expression such as una mica, or repetition can change the force. Repetition is especially context-sensitive: passa, passa usually welcomes someone in, while marxa, marxa can dismiss them.
Vine, Laia, que et vull ensenyar una cosa.
Come here, Laia; I want to show you something.
Passin, passin; no es quedin al passadís.
Do come in; don't stay in the hallway. (formal plural)
Written messages lack vocal cues, so a bare command can seem harsher than intended. In email, Em podries confirmar...? or Si us plau, confirmeu... is often safer than an isolated Confirma.... Conversely, workplace procedures normally value concise imperatives; excessive deference can obscure who must do what.
Do not transfer English progressive politeness patterns into the verb being requested. Catalan normally uses the simple infinitive after the modal: Em podries enviar les xifres? The progressive estar enviant describes an action in progress; it is not a general politeness device.
Imperative, question, or impersonal instruction?
Use an imperative when the addressee is identifiable and the requested action is immediate or procedural. Use an interrogative request when you want to foreground the listener's ability or willingness. Use cal + infinitive, s'ha de + infinitive, or a passive expression when the rule matters more than the person enforcing it.
Premeu el botó verd i espereu que s'encengui el llum.
Press the green button and wait for the light to come on.
Podríeu parlar-ne demà amb la directora?
Could you discuss it with the head teacher tomorrow?
Cal presentar el document original a recepció.
The original document must be presented at reception. (formal)
This is a contrast of pragmatic viewpoint. Premeu directly organizes the reader's action; podríeu negotiates a request; cal presentar presents the action as a requirement with no grammatically named addressee. For impersonal public wording, see infinitives in instructions and signs.
Mini-dialogue
—Perdoni, em podria ajudar amb aquesta màquina? —És clar. Insereixi la targeta i introdueixi el codi.
—Excuse me, could you help me with this machine? —Of course. Insert your card and enter the code. (formal)
—He de prémer el botó vermell? —No, premi el verd, si us plau.
—Should I press the red button? —No, press the green one, please. (formal)
The customer opens with a conditional request because they are asking a stranger for help. The helper then uses vostè imperatives because clear step-by-step instructions are appropriate. Direct morphology and courteous social behavior are fully compatible.
Common Mistakes
1. Mixing vostè with second-person verb agreement.
❌ Vostès, ompliu aquest formulari.
Incorrect — vostès requires third-person plural agreement.
✅ Vostès, omplin aquest formulari.
Fill in this form. (formal plural)
2. Copying an English progressive into a routine request.
❌ Podries estar enviant-me la factura avui?
Unnatural for a simple request — the progressive wrongly suggests an ongoing action.
✅ Podries enviar-me la factura avui?
Could you send me the invoice today?
3. Writing the reduced pronunciation as siusplau.
❌ Siusplau, adjunteu la documentació requerida.
Incorrect spelling — the normative expression is written as three words.
✅ Si us plau, adjunteu la documentació requerida.
Please attach the required documentation. (formal)
4. Using the infinitive as a personal spoken command.
❌ Escoltar-me un moment, Marta.
Incorrect as a direct command to Marta.
✅ Escolta'm un moment, Marta.
Listen to me for a moment, Marta.
5. Inserting que between podries and its infinitive.
❌ Podries que m'ajudessis amb aquestes caixes?
Incorrect — poder takes an infinitive here, not que plus a subjunctive clause.
✅ Podries ajudar-me amb aquestes caixes?
Could you help me with these boxes?
Key Takeaways
Directness and politeness are related, but they are not the same. Choose tu, vosaltres, vós, vostè, or vostès consistently; then calibrate the request with context, intonation, si us plau, a conditional question, or an impersonal construction. In ordinary Catalan, a well-contextualized imperative is often the most natural courteous choice.
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Start learning Catalan →Related Topics
- Affirmative ImperativesA2 — Form affirmative Catalan commands for tu, vostè, nosaltres, vosaltres, and vostès, with correct agreement and weak-pronoun placement.
- Negative ImperativesA2 — Build Catalan prohibitions with no plus the present subjunctive, placing weak pronouns correctly for every command person.
- Weak Pronouns with Affirmative CommandsA2 — Learn where Catalan weak pronouns go in affirmative commands and how hyphens, apostrophes, stress, and pronoun clusters work.
- Conditional Politeness and DistanceA2 — Choose among volia, voldria, podria, and m'agradaria to soften requests naturally in Catalan conversations and service encounters.
- Infinitives in Instructions and SignsB1 — Understand directive infinitives on Catalan signs and in procedures, and know when an imperative or impersonal construction is the better choice.
- Vostè, Vostès, Tu, and VosaltresA1 — Choose Catalan forms of address and match tu and vosaltres with second-person verbs, but vostè and vostès with third-person verbs.