Editing Imperative mood (section)

====German====
German verbs have a singular and a plural imperative. The singular imperative is equivalent to the bare stem or the bare stem + {{lang|de|-e}}. (In most verbs, both ways are correct.) The plural imperative is the same as the second-person plural of the present tense.

* {{lang|de|Sing!}} or: {{lang|de|Singe!}} – said to one person: "Sing!"
* {{lang|de|Singt!}} – said to a group of persons: "Sing!"

In order to emphasize their addressee, German imperatives can be followed by the [[nominative case|nominative]] personal pronouns {{lang|de|du}} ("thou; you {{gcl|SG}}") or {{lang|de|ihr}} ("you {{gcl|PL}}"), respectively. For example: "{{lang|de|Geh weg!}}" – "{{lang|de|Geh <u>du</u> doch weg!}}" ("Go away!" – "Why, <u>you</u> go away!").

German has [[T/V distinction]], which means that the pronouns {{lang|de|du}} and {{lang|de|ihr}} are used chiefly towards persons with whom one is privately acquainted, which holds true for the corresponding imperatives. (For details see [[German grammar]].) Otherwise, the social-distance pronoun {{lang|de|Sie}} (you) is used for both singular and plural. Since there exists no actual imperative corresponding to {{lang|de|Sie}}, the form is paraphrased with the third-person plural of the present [[subjunctive]] followed by the pronoun:

* {{lang|de|Singen Sie!}} – said to one or more persons: "Sing!"
* {{lang|de|Seien Sie still!}} – said to one or more persons: "Be quiet!"

Occasionally, the [[infinitive]] (''Infinitiv'' or ''Infinitiv als Imperativ'') may be used as a mild or polite imperative, in order to avoid directly addressing the person or to simplify the sentence's construction. Although sometimes used in spoken language, this form is most commonly used in general instructions and recipes. Examples include:

* {{lang|de|Nicht rauchen!}} – "No smoking!"
* {{lang|de|Pasta im Salzwasser sehr bissfest kochen und abtropfen lassen.}} - "Cook the pasta ''al dente'' and drain."
* {{lang|de|Bitte nicht berühren!}} - "Please do not touch!"

Like English, German features many constructions that express commands, wishes, etc. They are thus [[semantics|semantically]] related to imperatives without being imperatives grammatically:
* {{lang|de|Lasst uns singen!}} (Let's sing!)
* {{lang|de|Mögest du singen!}} (You may sing!)
* {{lang|de|Du sollst singen!}} (You should sing!)