English marks a command mostly by dropping the subject — "Sit down," "Come here" — and softens with "please." Chinese works the same way in spirit but has no special imperative verb form at all: the plain verb is the command. What varies is the politeness wrapping around it — a leading 请, a trailing 吧, a gentle 一下, or the prohibition markers 别 and 不要. Master those four devices and you can pitch any command anywhere from a barked 坐! ("Sit!") to a warm 您先请坐 ("Please, do have a seat first").
From blunt to polite
The bare verb phrase, usually with the subject dropped, is the most direct command. It's fine between close friends or in urgent situations, but on its own it can sound curt — so speakers routinely soften it. 请 before the verb makes it a polite request; sentence-final 吧 turns it into a gentle suggestion ("go on, …"); V + 一下 shrinks the action to "just a bit," which feels casual and unimposing.
坐！
zuò
Sit! — bare verb, maximally direct.
请坐。
qǐng zuò
Please, have a seat. — 请 before the verb makes it polite.
你先坐吧。
nǐ xiān zuò ba
Why don't you sit down first. — sentence-final 吧 softens it to a suggestion.
帮我看一下这个。
bāng wǒ kàn yíxià zhège
Take a look at this for me. — V + 一下 makes the request light and casual.
| Type | Pattern | Example | Force |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bare | Verb (+ object) | 坐！/ 关门 | direct, can be urgent or curt |
| Polite | 请 + verb | 请进 | polite invitation |
| Softened | verb + 吧 | 走吧 | gentle suggestion, "let's / go on" |
| Softened | verb + 一下 | 等一下 | "just a moment," casual |
| Negative | 别 + verb | 别哭 | don't |
| Negative | 不要 + verb | 不要动 | don't (firmer) |
Suggestions with 吧, and "let's"
Sentence-final 吧 is the workhorse of soft commands. Added to a verb phrase it says "go ahead and …" or, with a first-person-plural subject, "let's …". It takes the edge off an order and invites agreement rather than demanding it. This is why 走 alone can sound like "Move!" while 走吧 is a friendly "Let's go / come on."
我们走吧。
wǒmen zǒu ba
Let's go. — 吧 turns the command into a shared suggestion.
快点儿，要迟到了！
kuài diǎnr, yào chídào le
Hurry up, we're going to be late! — a bare urging, no softener.
Saying "don't": 别 and 不要
Negative commands do not use 不. Prohibition takes 别 (bié) or 不要 (bú yào), both placed before the verb. 别 is the everyday choice; 不要 is a touch firmer or more formal. A useful extra pattern is 别…了, "stop …-ing / that's enough of …," which tells someone to cease an action already in progress.
别走。
bié zǒu
Don't go. — 别 before the verb for prohibition.
不要说话。
bú yào shuōhuà
Don't talk. — 不要 is a slightly firmer 'don't'.
别担心，我来帮你。
bié dānxīn, wǒ lái bāng nǐ
Don't worry, I'll help you. — reassuring prohibition with 别.
别说了，我都听腻了。
bié shuō le, wǒ dōu tīng nì le
Stop talking, I'm sick of hearing it. — 别…了 means 'cease doing'.
Common Mistakes
1. Using 不 instead of 别/不要 for "don't." 不 + verb negates a statement ("won't / doesn't"), not a command. 不走 means "won't go," not "Don't go."
❌ 不走！
Wrong for a command — this means 'won't go', not 'Don't go'.
✅ 别走！
bié zǒu
Don't go! — prohibition uses 别 (or 不要).
2. Putting 请 at the end like English "please." 请 is a pre-verbal marker; it cannot trail the sentence.
❌ 坐请。
Incorrect — 请 must come before the verb.
✅ 请坐。
qǐng zuò
Please, have a seat. — 请 leads the verb phrase.
3. Tacking on 你 in a way that sounds blunt. A bare 你 + command can land like an accusation or a scolding. Drop the subject, or soften with 吧/请.
❌ 你坐！
Blunt — a bare 你 + command can sound confrontational.
✅ 你坐吧。/ 请坐。
nǐ zuò ba / qǐng zuò
Have a seat. — 吧 or 请 removes the sharp edge.
Key Takeaways
- Chinese has no special imperative form — the plain verb phrase, subject usually dropped, is the command.
- Soften with 请 (before the verb), 吧 (sentence-final suggestion), or 一下 (casual "just a bit").
- Say "don't" with 别 or 不要, never 不; 别…了 means "stop doing it."
- 请 leads the verb phrase; it never trails the sentence like English "please."
- A bare 你
- command can sound harsh — drop the subject or add a softener.
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- Exclamations: 多…啊 / 太…了 / 真…HSK 3 — Exclamations run on fixed frames — 多(么)…啊! (多美啊!), 太…了! (太好了!), 真…! (真棒!), 好…啊! — keeping normal statement order and marking the emotion with a degree word plus a final particle.
- 别 / 不要 (bié / búyào): Don't!HSK 2 — To tell someone NOT to do something, Chinese uses the imperative negators 别 (bié) or the fuller 不要 (búyào) — 别走！ 'don't leave!', 不要担心 'don't worry' — never plain 不, which only makes a statement (不走 = 'won't leave'). A final 了 turns 别 into 'stop!': 别说了.
- Softening with 一下 / 一点儿 / 吧 / 嘛HSK 3 — Chinese takes the edge off a bare command with light add-ons: verbal 一下 (yíxià) 'briefly' (等一下 'hold on', 看一下 'have a look'), 一点儿 (yìdiǎnr) 'a bit' (便宜一点儿 'a little cheaper'), sentence-final 吧 (ba) for suggestion (走吧 'let's go'), and 嘛 (ma) for coaxing (别生气嘛 'come on, don't be mad'). Where English uses 'just / a little / would you mind', Chinese sprinkles these particles.
- 吧 (Suggestion / Softened Command)HSK 2 — Sentence-final 吧 (ba) turns a statement into a gentle suggestion or softened order — the English 'let's / why don't you / go ahead': 我们走吧, 你先吃吧, 休息一下吧.