The negative imperative is where the Portuguese command system becomes beautifully symmetrical. The affirmative side is a patchwork — tu takes one form, você and vocês take another, nós takes a third. The negative side collapses all of this into a single, unified pattern: não + present subjunctive, for every person, every verb, no exceptions. Once you have the present subjunctive in your head, negative commands are already written.
The one rule for every negative command
For every person and every verb, a negative command is não followed by the present subjunctive form matching that person. That is the entire rule.
- tu → não
- 2sg present subjunctive: não fales, não comas, não partas
- você → não
- 3sg present subjunctive: não fale, não coma, não parta
- nós → não
- 1pl present subjunctive: não falemos, não comamos, não partamos
- vocês → não
- 3pl present subjunctive: não falem, não comam, não partam
The asymmetry that trips English speakers
In English, the same command word does both jobs: speak! and don't speak! both use speak. Portuguese does not work this way for the tu form. Watch what happens when you flip the polarity:
Fala mais alto.
Speak up.
Não fales tão alto.
Don't speak so loudly.
The verb changed. Fala (affirmative tu) became fales (negative tu = present subjunctive). An English speaker who reasons "just stick não in front of the affirmative command" will produce não fala — which in Portuguese is grammatical but means something completely different ("he doesn't speak" or "you don't speak," a statement, not a command). The intended command requires the subjunctive.
The other forms (você, nós, vocês) do not have this problem, because their affirmative commands are already subjunctive. For them, adding não genuinely does not change the verb form:
Fale mais alto.
Speak up. (to você)
Não fale tão alto.
Don't speak so loudly. (to você)
The você form fale is the same whether the command is affirmative or negative. Only the tu slot forces you to switch forms.
The complete negative paradigm — regular verbs
Here are the negative commands for regular verbs in all three conjugation classes.
-ar verbs: falar (to speak)
| Person | Negative command | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| tu | não fales | don't speak |
| você | não fale | don't speak (formal) |
| nós | não falemos | let's not speak |
| vocês | não falem | don't speak (plural) |
-er verbs: beber (to drink)
| Person | Negative command | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| tu | não bebas | don't drink |
| você | não beba | don't drink (formal) |
| nós | não bebamos | let's not drink |
| vocês | não bebam | don't drink (plural) |
-ir verbs: abrir (to open)
| Person | Negative command | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| tu | não abras | don't open |
| você | não abra | don't open (formal) |
| nós | não abramos | let's not open |
| vocês | não abram | don't open (plural) |
Notice the vowel pattern: -ar verbs shift to -e- endings, and -er/-ir verbs shift to -a- endings. This is the core signature of the Portuguese subjunctive, and it falls straight out of Latin. If the infinitive ends in -ar, expect e in the subjunctive; if it ends in -er or -ir, expect a. Once your ear tunes to this vowel flip, the forms become predictable.
Why the subjunctive for negative commands?
There is actually a logic here, and it is worth pausing on. The subjunctive is the mood of unreal, wished-for, or not-yet-actualized situations. When you tell someone to do something (affirmative), Portuguese originally had its own dedicated imperative morphology from Latin. When you tell someone not to do something, however, you are describing an action that you want to remain unreal — "don't let this happen" — which is exactly the semantic territory of the subjunctive.
Latin already pushed negative commands into the subjunctive (ne dicas, "don't say"), and Portuguese inherited that logic. So when you say não fales, you are essentially saying "let it not be the case that you speak." The subjunctive is pragmatically perfect for this: the action lives in the realm of what you are trying to prevent, not what is happening.
Não digas isso à tua mãe.
Don't say that to your mother.
Não façam barulho, o pai está a dormir.
Don't make noise, Dad is sleeping.
Não te preocupes, vai correr tudo bem.
Don't worry, everything's going to be fine.
Irregular verbs in the negative imperative
Because negative commands are subjunctive, the irregulars are simply the irregular present subjunctives. Here are the most common:
| Infinitive | não tu | não você | não nós | não vocês |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ser | não sejas | não seja | não sejamos | não sejam |
| estar | não estejas | não esteja | não estejamos | não estejam |
| ter | não tenhas | não tenha | não tenhamos | não tenham |
| ir | não vás | não vá | não vamos | não vão |
| fazer | não faças | não faça | não façamos | não façam |
| dizer | não digas | não diga | não digamos | não digam |
| pôr | não ponhas | não ponha | não ponhamos | não ponham |
| vir | não venhas | não venha | não venhamos | não venham |
| dar | não dês | não dê | não demos | não deem |
| ver | não vejas | não veja | não vejamos | não vejam |
Diacritics are critical. Não vás carries an acute accent because the tu subjunctive of ir is stressed on the final -á. Não dês and não dê both take diacritics to distinguish them from the preposition de. Dropping an accent here is a factual error, not a stylistic choice.
Não sejas parvo, eu estou a brincar.
Don't be silly, I'm joking.
Não vás sem o guarda-chuva.
Don't go without your umbrella.
Não faças isso, vais partir o copo.
Don't do that, you'll break the glass.
Não ponhas os pés no sofá.
Don't put your feet on the sofa.
Não tenham medo, o cão não morde.
Don't be afraid, the dog doesn't bite.
Não digam a ninguém o que viram.
Don't tell anyone what you saw.
Clitic placement flips
This is the second big thing that changes when a command goes negative: pronoun placement. Affirmative commands are enclitic (pronoun after, with a hyphen). Negative commands are proclitic (pronoun before, as a separate word). The word não attracts the pronoun forward.
Dá-me o livro.
Give me the book.
Não me dês o livro.
Don't give me the book.
Senta-te.
Sit down.
Não te sentes aí, a cadeira está partida.
Don't sit there, the chair is broken.
Diga-me a verdade.
Tell me the truth.
Não me diga que se esqueceu outra vez.
Don't tell me you forgot again.
Notice that the pronoun changes register with the verb form: não me dês (tu) vs não me dê (você). The clitic me stays constant, but the verb form flips between 2sg and 3sg subjunctive. For the full treatment of clitic placement with commands — including combined pronouns like não mo dês — see pronoun placement with commands.
Negative nós — "let's not..."
The não falemos construction is the only way to form a clean negative "let's not." The everyday analytic form vamos + infinitive does not have a reliable negative equivalent. If you say não vamos falar disso, you get an ambiguous sentence that most naturally reads as "we're not going to talk about that" (a factual prediction about the future), not "let's not talk about that" (a proposal).
Não falemos disso à frente dele.
Let's not talk about that in front of him.
Não sejamos precipitados.
Let's not be hasty.
Não nos esqueçamos de fechar a porta.
Let's not forget to close the door.
If the synthetic não falemos feels too formal for a casual setting, the usual workaround is to reformulate with an impersonal infinitive construction: é melhor não falarmos disso ("it's better if we don't talk about that"). This is how speakers escape the register trap.
Common idiomatic negative commands
A few negative imperatives in Portuguese are so frequent they function as fixed expressions. Learn these as whole phrases.
Não te preocupes.
Don't worry. (tu)
Não se preocupe.
Don't worry. (você)
Não faz mal.
It's okay / don't worry about it. (literally 'it does no harm')
Não ligues.
Don't mind / pay attention to it. (tu, to shrug something off)
Não me digas!
You don't say! / Really? (surprise expression)
Não te chateies.
Don't get upset. (tu)
Não desista.
Don't give up. (você)
Não me digas is particularly worth flagging: although it is literally a negative command, it is used conversationally as an expression of surprise, not a real instruction to stop speaking. Like English no way! or you're kidding!, it expresses astonishment.
Real-life contexts
Negative commands are everywhere in daily Portuguese life — from traffic signs to parents' warnings to polite refusals.
Parental warnings
Não corras pela rua.
Don't run in the street.
Não mexas nisso, é frágil.
Don't touch that, it's fragile.
Não comas bolachas antes do jantar.
Don't eat cookies before dinner.
Signs and public notices
Não fumar.
No smoking. (sign — note the infinitive, not a conjugated imperative)
Não pisar a relva.
Keep off the grass. (sign)
Note that signs in Portugal typically use the impersonal infinitive (não fumar, não pisar) rather than a conjugated imperative. This is a feature of written public-notice style, not spoken commands.
Advice and warnings between adults
Não fiques até muito tarde, tens de trabalhar amanhã.
Don't stay out too late, you have to work tomorrow.
Não comprem essa marca, é de má qualidade.
Don't buy that brand, it's poor quality.
Não te esqueças de ligar à tua avó.
Don't forget to call your grandmother.
Formal / professional
Por favor, não interrompa a apresentação.
Please don't interrupt the presentation.
Não se preocupe, vamos resolver isto rapidamente.
Don't worry, we'll sort this out quickly.
Common Mistakes
❌ Não fala tão alto!
Incorrect — affirmative tu form with não does not make a command.
✅ Não fales tão alto!
Don't speak so loudly!
This is the single most common error among English speakers. In English, you negate a command by sticking don't in front; in Portuguese, the verb itself also has to change to the subjunctive. Não fala is not a command — it is a statement ("he doesn't speak") or a question ("doesn't he speak?"). The command requires não fales.
❌ Não dá-me o livro.
Incorrect — enclisis is impossible with a negative command.
✅ Não me dês o livro.
Don't give me the book.
Negative commands force proclisis. The hyphen-attached pronoun of an affirmative command (dá-me) has to move in front when não appears. It is not "say não dá-me" — it is "say não me dês."
❌ Não vai sem mim.
Incorrect — present indicative cannot function as a tu negative command.
✅ Não vás sem mim.
Don't go without me.
The tu imperative of ir in the negative is não vás, with an acute accent. Não vai is a statement ("he's not going" / "you're not going"), not a command.
❌ Não sejam parvo!
Incorrect — plural verb (sejam) but singular adjective (parvo).
✅ Não sejam parvos!
Don't be silly! (to multiple people)
When you command multiple people, the adjective has to match in number. Keep the whole sentence consistent.
❌ Não vamos falar disso agora. (meaning: let's not talk about it now)
Ambiguous — more naturally means 'we're not going to talk about it now.'
✅ Não falemos disso agora.
Let's not talk about that now.
To express "let's not..." clearly, use the synthetic form não falemos. The analytic não vamos + infinitive reads more naturally as a factual prediction about the future.
Negative commands and politeness
Because negative commands tell someone not to do something, they can come across as more confrontational than affirmative ones. Softening matters doubly.
Não faças isso, se faz favor.
Please don't do that.
Se calhar é melhor não ires agora.
Maybe it's better if you don't go right now.
Preferia que não fumasses aqui.
I'd rather you didn't smoke here. (imperfect subjunctive — very polite)
Notice the last example: in genuinely polite contexts, Portuguese often sidesteps the imperative altogether and uses the imperfect subjunctive with a verb like preferir. This is a very natural way to make a request without sounding bossy.
Key takeaways
- Every negative command in Portuguese = não + present subjunctive, for every person.
- The affirmative tu form (fala, come, parte) is the only one that looks different — the moment you negate, it switches to the subjunctive (não fales, não comas, não partas).
- Irregular verbs follow their irregular subjunctive paradigms: não sejas, não faças, não digas, não ponhas, não vás.
- Pronouns flip to proclisis when a command is negated: dá-me → não me dês.
- "Let's not..." uses the synthetic não + 1pl subjunctive — não falemos, não sejamos.
- Diacritics are part of the form, not decoration: não vás (acute), não dês/dê (acute/circumflex).
For the affirmative side of each slot, see tu affirmative and você affirmative. For the underlying mood, see subjunctive overview. For pronoun placement, see pronouns with commands.
Related Topics
- Imperative OverviewA2 — Giving commands and instructions in European Portuguese
- Tu Affirmative CommandsA2 — Forming affirmative commands with tu -- the everyday form between friends, family, and peers
- Você Affirmative CommandsA2 — Forming affirmative commands with você -- the more formal singular, common in customer service and professional contexts
- Pronoun Placement with CommandsB1 — Where to put object pronouns in affirmative and negative commands — enclisis, proclisis, combined clitics, and phonetic mergers unique to European Portuguese
- Subjunctive Mood OverviewB1 — What the conjuntivo is in European Portuguese, why it exists, and when the language requires it — a tour of irrealis across the present, imperfect, and future subjunctive