Prends ce savon et lave-toi.

Questions & Answers about Prends ce savon et lave-toi.

Why is there a hyphen and the word toi at the end of lave-toi?
This sentence uses an affirmative command with a reflexive verb. When you tell someone to do something with a reflexive verb like se laver (to wash oneself), the reflexive pronoun moves after the verb and attaches with a hyphen. Because this is the informal tu form, the pronoun te changes to the stressed form toi.
Why does prends end in an s but lave doesn't, if they are both commands for tu?
In the tu form for commands, -er verbs like laver drop their final s, making it lave. However, verbs that end in -re or -ir, like prendre, keep their final s. That is why you see prends with an s, but lave without one.
Why is it ce savon instead of le savon?
Ce is a demonstrative adjective meaning "this" or "that" for masculine singular nouns. While le savon means "the soap", using ce savon points to a specific item nearby, meaning "this soap".
How would the second half of the sentence change if I were speaking to a group of people?
It would become lavez-vous. You use the vous form of the verb, and the reflexive pronoun moves after the hyphen. Unlike te changing to toi, the pronoun vous stays exactly the same when attached to the end of a command.

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