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"Ser" in the imperativeThis is the place for questions about conjugations, verb tenses, adverbs, adjectives, word order, syntax and other grammar questions for English or Spanish. |
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"Ser" in the imperative
Just curious. I don't think I've ever heard "ser" used here (Mexico) in the imperative except in negative commands. In English we commonly say things like "be nice" or "be good" etc. I've heard "no seas malo" or "no seas sangrón", or "no seas pesado" but I don't think I've ever heard "sé amable" or "sé puntual" etc. (or maybe I have and just didn't realize it).
Is it more common than I think? Thanks in advance. |
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#2
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I don't know in Mexico, but in Spain it's very used by mothers :-) : Sé bueno.
If we have a date and you had been late other times, I may probably say: Nos vemos a las ocho. Por favor, sé puntual. Another example, if my husband hates my sister and she is coming today for lunch, I can say to him: Por favor, sé amable con ella.
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#3
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BTW, your English is excellent.
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I would be grateful if you would correct my errors. Estaría agradecido si corrigiera mis errores. Last edited by tacuba; March 21, 2009 at 04:16 PM. |
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- Lou Ann, de Washington, DC, USA Específicamente quiero recibir ayuda con el español de latinoamerica. ¡Muchísimas gracias! |
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#6
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I'm sure the "sé ...." commands are used all of the time and as usual I'm just being obtuse.
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I would be grateful if you would correct my errors. Estaría agradecido si corrigiera mis errores. |
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@tacuba: I think you're right. Imperative can be heard more easily from people with a higher education background, and still they might prefer the colloquial change for a negative command... I think it has to do with our "slight phobia" for sounding rude at using imperative. You might also have noticed we often change it for questions.
Much people prefers "¿me da un refresco?" instead of "déme un refresco" (even saying "por favor"). @Lou Ann: It's fun for a cliché, but it's not a universal rule that Mexicans are never on time.
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#8
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Muchas gracias por la ayuda y las explicaciónes tan claras, Angelica.
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I would be grateful if you would correct my errors. Estaría agradecido si corrigiera mis errores. |
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I am one of those people who is SO hyper-punctual that I know it is a FAULT. I envy people who are comfortable being more flexible with their schedules. My Latin friends always joke about punctuality. My Latin students definitely don't see any need for me to mark them "tardy" if they're only 20 or 30 minutes late for class. How silly! The only reason I joked about the punctuality was because I have heard Latinos joke about it themselves. My Peruvian friend mentioned that I must have some Latin blood in me since I was a minute late for something once. LOL!!
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- Lou Ann, de Washington, DC, USA Específicamente quiero recibir ayuda con el español de latinoamerica. ¡Muchísimas gracias! |
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However, I like to be on time. Always. |
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