Learn Hardcore French: Réponds immédiatement, s’il te plaît.

In French, the present-tense imperative form for tu (second-person singular) of regular -re verbs ends in -s. Here, répondre becomes réponds in the imperative, telling someone directly, “Answer!”

What does immédiatement mean compared to other adverbs of time?

Immédiatement translates to immediately. You could also see words like tout de suite (right away) with a similar meaning. However, immédiatement is more formal, while tout de suite is slightly more colloquial.

Why is there s’il te plaît at the end?

That phrase literally means if it pleases you, but it’s simply how you say please in French when addressing someone informally (using tu). The full form is s’il te plaît, where te is the object pronoun referring to the listener.

How do I know to use tu instead of vous here?

If you’re speaking to someone you know well (friend, family member, peer), French uses the tu form. If you replaced tu with vous, it would become s’il vous plaît, and the imperative would also change to répondez for the polite/plural form.

Are there any informal variants of réponds immédiatement?

Yes, you might sometimes hear something like réponds-moi tout de suite (answer me right away). Or in casual conversation among close friends, someone might say Réponds vite! (Answer fast!). They carry the same idea with slightly different expressions.