Japanese has a true imperative form — 命令形 (めいれいけい) — a bare verb ending that means "Do it!" On paper it looks like English's bare command ("Eat!" "Go!"), but socially it is a different beast: it is blunt, forceful, and heavily marked. Everyday "please do X" almost never uses it. That's why this page spends as much time on where the plain imperative lives — signs, sports, emergencies, orders, anger — as on how to build it. Knowing when not to use it matters more than the conjugation.
How to form it
Ichidan (ru-verbs): drop る, add ろ
| Dictionary | Imperative | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| 食べる | 食べろ | tabero |
| 見る | 見ろ | miro |
| 起きる | 起きろ | okiro |
| 逃げる | 逃げろ | nigero |
There is a second, (literary) ichidan imperative in 〜よ (食べよ tabeyo, 見よ miyo), found in older prose, translations of scripture, and stage directions — but in speech and modern signage the ろ ending is standard.
Godan (u-verbs): shift the final -u sound to -e
The last syllable moves down its column from the u-row to the e-row (く→け, む→め, and so on).
| Dictionary | Imperative | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| 行く | 行け | ike |
| 書く | 書け | kake |
| 話す | 話せ | hanase |
| 待つ | 待て | mate |
| 飲む | 飲め | nome |
| 遊ぶ | 遊べ | asobe |
| 帰る | 帰れ | kaere |
| 買う | 買え | kae |
Irregulars — learn these exactly
| Dictionary | Imperative | Reading | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| する | しろ | shiro | せよ (seyo) is the (literary) / written variant |
| 来る | 来い | koi | irregular vowel — written 来い, read こい |
早くしろ！遅刻するぞ。
hayaku shiro! chikoku suru zo
Hurry up! We're going to be late.
おい、こっちに来い。
oi, kotchi ni koi
Hey, come here.
Where it actually lives
This is the part that matters. The plain imperative is largely confined to a handful of contexts. Learn to recognize these, and to reach for something softer everywhere else.
1. Signs and public instructions
On road signs and safety notices, brevity wins and there's no listener to offend, so the bare imperative is normal and neutral (neutral on signage).
止まれ
tomare
Stop. (painted at an intersection)
非常時にはこのハンドルを回せ
hijōji ni wa kono handoru o mawase
In an emergency, turn this handle.
2. Sports, cheering, and encouragement
Shouted from the stands or the sidelines, the imperative is pure energy — and here it reads as supportive, not aggressive (informal). がんばれ is the classic.
がんばれ！あと少しだ！
ganbare! ato sukoshi da
Come on, you can do it! Almost there!
走れ、走れ！打て！
hashire, hashire! ute
Run, run! Hit it!
3. Emergencies and urgent orders
When there's no time for politeness — danger, coaching, the military — the imperative delivers the command instantly (blunt / urgent).
火事だ！早く逃げろ！
kaji da! hayaku nigero
Fire! Get out, quick!
危ない、止まれ！
abunai, tomare
Watch out — stop!
4. Rough, emphatic (typically male) speech and anger
In heated, casual, largely masculine speech, the imperative expresses anger or dominance (informal, rough). This is the register of arguments, gangster movies, and telling someone off — powerful, and easy to misfire.
うるさい、黙れ！
urusai, damare
Shut up, you're being loud!
いい加減にしろ。もう疲れた。
ii kagen ni shiro. mō tsukareta
Give it a rest already. I'm exhausted.
5. Quoted (reported) commands
Even speakers who would never shout an imperative use it inside a quotation to report an order — it's the standard neutral way to relay "told me to…" (neutral in reported speech).
母は「早く帰れ」と言った。
haha wa 'hayaku kaere' to itta
My mother said, 'Come home early.'
先生に静かにしろと注意された。
sensei ni shizuka ni shiro to chūi sareta
The teacher told me to be quiet.
The English-speaker trap: it is not a polite request
Here's the danger. English "Please sit down" and a bare "Sit down!" differ mostly by the word "please" and by tone; both are usable in ordinary polite situations. The Japanese plain imperative is not on that spectrum at all. Telling a guest 座れ (suware, "Sit!") or a coworker これを見ろ (kore o miro, "Look at this!") is jarring — it sounds like an order barked at a subordinate or a dog. For an ordinary polite request you want an entirely different construction.
どうぞ、こちらに座ってください。
dōzo, kochira ni suwatte kudasai
Please, have a seat over here.
Comparison with English
English has one bare command form and leans on "please," tone, and framing ("Could you…?") to control politeness. Japanese instead grammaticalizes the whole range: a distinct blunt imperative (行け), a softened downward command (〜なさい), and a polite request (〜てください) are three different forms, not one form plus intonation. So the plain imperative isn't "the command form you default to" — it's the marked, forceful edge of a system, and it stays in its lane: signs, sports, emergencies, quoted orders, and rough speech. To tell someone not to do something in the same blunt register, you use the prohibitive 〜な (止まるな, "don't stop"), its natural negative partner.
Common mistakes
❌ お客様、こちらに座れ。
o-kyaku-sama, kochira ni suware
Incorrect: barking a bare imperative at a customer is rude — it sounds like an order to a subordinate.
✅ お客様、こちらにお座りください。
o-kyaku-sama, kochira ni o-suwari kudasai
Correct: for a customer, use a polite request (here, honorific お座りください).
❌ 来る！
kuru
Incorrect for 'Come here!' — the imperative of 来る is irregular, and the dictionary form 来る is not a command.
✅ 来い！
koi
Correct: 来る → 来い (koi).
❌ 早くしろて。
hayaku shiro te
Incorrect: the imperative is a complete form — don't tack on て or ください.
✅ 早くしろ。／ 早くしてください。
hayaku shiro. / hayaku shite kudasai
Correct: either the bare imperative, or the polite 〜てください — not a blend.
❌ 食べれ
tabere
Incorrect for 'Eat!' — ichidan verbs take ろ, not れ; 食べれ is a nonstandard dialect/casual form.
✅ 食べろ。
tabero
Correct: 食べる → 食べろ (standard ichidan imperative).
Key takeaways
- Formation: ichidan drop る + ろ (食べろ); godan shift -u → -e (行け, 飲め, 待て); irregular する → しろ (せよ = literary), 来る → 来い (koi).
- The plain imperative is blunt and heavily marked — it is not the default command.
- It lives in a few places: signs (止まれ), sports/cheers (がんばれ), emergencies/orders (逃げろ), rough or angry speech (黙れ), and quoted commands (帰れと言った).
- For ordinary polite requests, use 〜てください; for a firm parent/teacher command, use 〜なさい.
- Its negative partner is the prohibitive 〜な ("don't…").
Now practice Japanese
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Start learning Japanese→Related Topics
- 〜なさい: The Softened CommandN4 — How the masu-stem plus なさい gives a firm but caring downward command — the parent-to-child, teacher-to-pupil imperative.
- The Prohibitive 〜な: Don'tN4 — How dictionary form + な forms the blunt negative command 'don't,' why it is nearly the opposite of the encouraging masu-stem + な, and when to soften it to 〜ないで.
- Casual Plain Speech: Features & FeelN4 — Casual Japanese (タメ口) is not polite Japanese with the ます chopped off — it is its own system of omission, contraction, and particle color, and speaking it well is an active skill that signals closeness.
- Imperative 命令形 & Prohibitive な: TableN3 — The blunt-command forms in one table — 五段 shift to the え-row (書け), 一段 add ろ/よ (食べろ/食べよ), する→しろ/せよ, 来る→来い, plus the prohibitive dictionary＋な (行くな) and how it differs from the softening ます-stem＋な (食べな).
- 〜てください: Polite Requests & InstructionsN4 — How to ask someone to do something with te-form + ください — the standard polite request and instruction — plus why it directs rather than defers, and the keigo forms that outrank it.