Imperatives: Usage, Softening, and Politeness | Russian Grammar

Knowing how to build a Russian imperative is only half the job; the other half is knowing how it lands on the listener. A bare command like Откро́й окно́ ("Open the window") is grammatically perfect but, said to a stranger or a boss, can sound like an order barked across a room. This page is about the pragmatics — choosing ты or вы, softening a request so it sounds courteous, proposing things with дава́й(те), passing commands to a third person with пусть, and the single twist that trips up every learner: in Russian, the welcoming version of a command is often the imperfective. (For how the forms are made — откро́й from откры́ть, чита́й from чита́ть — see the formation page; here we assume you can build them.)

ты-form vs. вы-form: who you're talking to

Every imperative has two address forms, exactly mirroring the ты/вы pronoun split. The ты-form is the bare stem-based imperative; the вы-form simply adds -те. You use the вы-form for three overlapping reasons: speaking to more than one person, speaking to one person you address as вы (a stranger, an elder, anyone formal), or keeping polite distance.

Verb	ты-form (informal / one person)	вы-form (formal / plural)
извини́ть (to excuse)	Извини́ (Sorry / Excuse me)	Извини́те
сказа́ть (to say)	Скажи́	Скажи́те
помо́чь (to help)	Помоги́	Помоги́те
подожда́ть (to wait)	Подожди́	Подожди́те

Извини́, я опозда́л — про́бки.

Sorry I'm late (to a friend) — there was traffic. — ты-form Извини́ for someone you're close to.

Извини́те, вы не подска́жете, где метро́?

Excuse me, could you tell me where the metro is? — вы-form Извини́те to a stranger on the street.

Ребя́та, подожди́те меня́ у вхо́да!

Guys, wait for me at the entrance! — вы-form because it's addressed to several people.

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The -те ending does double duty: it marks both "more than one person" and "one person I'm being polite to." So Подожди́те could be "wait" said to a group of friends or "wait" said respectfully to one stranger — context decides. When in doubt with any single adult you don't know well, default to the -те form.

Softening with пожа́луйста

The simplest courtesy upgrade is пожа́луйста ("please"). Unlike English "please," which usually sits at the front or back, Russian пожа́луйста is most natural right after the imperative, and in careful speech it is set off by commas — it behaves like a parenthetical word.

Переда́йте, пожа́луйста, соль.

Pass the salt, please. — пожа́луйста tucked in after the verb; this is the standard polite table request.

Закро́й, пожа́луйста, дверь.

Close the door, please. — even the informal ты-form becomes courteous with пожа́луйста.

Повтори́те, пожа́луйста, я не расслы́шал.

Please say that again, I didn't catch it. — a routine, polite way to ask for repetition.

"Let's…" is дава́й(те), not a conjugated form

This is a structural gap English speakers don't expect. There is no dedicated first-person-plural "let's" ending you can just attach to a verb. Russian builds "let's" with the particle дава́й (informal/singular) or дава́йте (formal/plural) — literally the imperative of дава́ть, "to give" — plus one of two things:

дава́й(те) + a perfective 1st-person-plural form for a one-off proposal: Дава́й пойдём ("let's go"), Дава́йте начнём ("let's begin").
дава́й(те) + an imperfective infinitive for taking up an activity: Дава́й чита́ть ("let's read"), Дава́йте рабо́тать ("let's get to work").

You can also hear the bare 1st-plural form without дава́й — Пойдём! ("let's go!"), Споём! ("let's sing!") — but дава́й(те) is the everyday workhorse, and dropping it can make a proposal sound abrupt or like a plain statement of intent.

Дава́й пойдём в кино́ сего́дня ве́чером.

Let's go to the movies tonight. — дава́й + perfective пойдём: a concrete one-off plan with a friend.

Дава́йте начнём, уже́ все собрали́сь.

Let's begin, everyone's here now. — дава́йте + perfective начнём: a polite/plural proposal at a meeting.

Дава́й встре́тимся за́втра в семь.

Let's meet tomorrow at seven. — дава́й + perfective встре́тимся for arranging a single meeting.

Дава́йте не бу́дем спо́рить из-за тако́й ерунды́.

Let's not argue over such nonsense. — the negative 'let's not' is дава́й(те) не бу́дем + infinitive.

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Two patterns to lock in: дава́й + пойдём/начнём/встре́тимся (a perfective "we'll-do-it" form) for a specific plan, and дава́й + чита́ть/рабо́тать (an imperfective infinitive) for starting up an activity. Omitting дава́й is possible (Пойдём!) but the version with дава́й is what makes the suggestion sound friendly and collaborative.

Aspect: the politeness twist

Imperatives force an aspect choice, and here Russian does the opposite of what learners' instincts suggest. As a baseline, the perfective is for a concrete one-time request you expect to get done (Откро́й окно́, "open the window"), while the imperfective is for a process, a habit — and, crucially, an invitation ("go ahead, please").

That last point is the trap. When you welcome someone — offer a seat, usher them in, tell them to help themselves — you use the imperfective, even though it's a single action. The imperfective sounds open and hospitable; the perfective sounds like a clipped command.

Сади́тесь, пожа́луйста!

Please, have a seat! — imperfective Сади́тесь: a warm invitation. The perfective Ся́дьте! sounds like 'Sit down!' snapped at someone.

Входи́те, входи́те, не стесня́йтесь!

Come in, come in, don't be shy! — imperfective Входи́те: a welcoming 'do come in,' not an order.

Бери́те ещё, я мно́го пригото́вила.

Take some more, I've made plenty. — imperfective Бери́те (from брать): an open offer to help oneself.

Звони́те в любо́е вре́мя, я всегда́ на свя́зи.

Call any time, I'm always reachable. — imperfective Звони́те: a standing offer, not 'place one call now.'

By contrast, when you genuinely want one specific thing done, the perfective is right and not at all rude — it's simply concrete:

Откро́й окно́, пожа́луйста, душно́.

Open the window, please, it's stuffy. — perfective Откро́й: one specific action you want completed now.

Пришли́ мне а́дрес, я не зна́ю, куда́ е́хать.

Send me the address, I don't know where to drive. — perfective Пришли́: a single concrete request.

This page only sketches the aspect rule because it has its own dedicated treatment, including the way negative commands flip the default — see aspect in the imperative.

Softening with the бы-conditional

For a really polite request — the equivalent of English "could you…" or "would you mind…" — Russian drops the imperative entirely and uses a question with the conditional particle бы. The frame is Не могли́ бы вы… (formal) or Не мог бы ты… (informal) plus an infinitive. Note the gender agreement in the informal form: не мог бы to a man, не могла́ бы to a woman.

Не могли́ бы вы помо́чь мне с чемода́ном?

Could you help me with my suitcase? — Не могли́ бы вы + infinitive: very courteous, ideal for strangers.

Не мог бы ты подвезти́ меня́ до вокза́ла?

Could you give me a lift to the station? — informal Не мог бы ты (to a man); use Не могла́ бы ты to a woman.

Я хоте́л бы заказа́ть сто́лик на двои́х.

I'd like to reserve a table for two. — Я хоте́л бы ('I would like') is softer and more polite than the blunt Я хочу́ ('I want').

This conditional softening is so central to sounding polite that it has its own page; here it is enough to know that Не могли́ бы вы… is the gold standard for requests to strangers. For the full picture, see the бы-conditional and polite requests with бы.

Third-person commands: пусть / пуска́й

You can't directly command someone who isn't present ("let him wait," "let them come in"). For that, Russian uses пусть (neutral) or its more colloquial twin пуска́й (informal) before a 3rd-person present/future verb. The literal sense is "let / may [he/she/they] do X."

Пусть он подождёт в коридо́ре.

Let him wait in the hallway. — пусть + 3rd-person он подождёт.

Пусть де́ти игра́ют, не меша́й им.

Let the children play, don't disturb them. — пусть + 3rd-person plural игра́ют.

Пуска́й говори́т что хо́чет, мне всё равно́.

Let him say whatever he wants, I don't care. — пуска́й (more colloquial) + 3rd-person говори́т.

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пусть and пуска́й mean the same thing; пусть is the safe neutral choice for any register, while пуска́й leans informal and conversational. Both are also used for warm wishes — Пусть всё бу́дет хорошо́ ("may everything be well") — which is why пусть shows up constantly in toasts and good-luck phrases.

Negative commands in brief

A quick pragmatic note (the full aspect logic is on the negative imperatives page): an imperfective negative is an ordinary prohibition — "don't do that" — while a perfective negative is a warning against something accidental.

Не опа́здывай на рабо́ту, пожа́луйста.

Don't be late for work, please. — imperfective Не опа́здывай: a standing prohibition / piece of advice.

Осторо́жно, не упади́ — там ско́льзко!

Careful, don't fall — it's slippery there! — perfective Не упади́: a warning about an accidental result, not a prohibition.

Common Mistakes

❌ Ся́дьте, пожа́луйста. (offering a guest a chair)

Sounds curt — the perfective imperative reads as a clipped order; an invitation to sit takes the imperfective.

✅ Сади́тесь, пожа́луйста.

Please, have a seat. — imperfective for a welcoming invitation.

❌ Мы пойдём в кино́! (intending 'let's go to the movies!')

That just states a fact ('we'll go to the movies'); a proposal needs дава́й.

✅ Дава́й пойдём в кино́!

Let's go to the movies! — дава́й turns a statement of intent into a suggestion.

❌ Извини́, вы не подска́жете, где метро́? (to a stranger)

Mismatched register — the ты-form Извини́ clashes with the formal вы you then use for the stranger.

✅ Извини́те, вы не подска́жете, где метро́?

Excuse me, could you tell me where the metro is? — keep the вы-form Извини́те consistent with вы.

❌ Пусть он ждать в коридо́ре.

Wrong — after пусть the verb is a conjugated 3rd-person form, not the infinitive ждать.

✅ Пусть он подождёт в коридо́ре.

Let him wait in the hallway. — пусть + the 3rd-person form подождёт.

❌ Можете вы помо́чь? (intending the polite 'could you help?')

Too blunt and oddly ordered; the courteous request is the negated conditional Не могли́ бы вы…

✅ Не могли́ бы вы помо́чь?

Could you help? — Не могли́ бы вы + infinitive is the standard polite request.

Key Takeaways

ты-form vs. вы-form: the bare imperative is informal/singular (Извини́, Подожди́); add -те for plural or polite address (Извини́те, Подожди́те). Keep the address form consistent with the pronoun you'd use.
Soften with пожа́луйста, placed right after the verb and set off by commas (Переда́йте, пожа́луйста, соль).
"Let's" = дава́й(те)
- a perfective 1st-plural form (Дава́й пойдём; Дава́йте начнём) or + an imperfective infinitive (Дава́й чита́ть); omitting дава́й sounds abrupt.
The politeness twist: invitations and "go ahead" use the imperfective (Сади́тесь!, Входи́те!, Бери́те!); the perfective versions sound like orders. See aspect in the imperative.
Third-person commands: пусть (neutral) / пуска́й (informal) + a 3rd-person verb (Пусть он подождёт).
Maximum politeness: drop the imperative and ask with the conditional — Не могли́ бы вы… / Не мог(ла́) бы ты… + infinitive, or Я хоте́л(а) бы… See polite requests with бы.

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