Amharic Command and Subjunctive Tenses
Making Commands and Expressing Wish in Amharic
The imperative form is used to issue direct commands or instructions. It is only conjugated for second-person pronouns (e.g., you singular, you plural). There is no prefix; only a suffix is added based on gender and number. The verb stem itself is often used for masculine singular commands.
Examples:
- Bel (በል) – Eat! (to a man)
- Tsaf (ጻፍ) – Write! (to a man)
- Belesh (በለሽ) – Eat! (to a woman)
- Tsafesh (ጻፈሽ) – Write! (to a woman)
- Belu (በሉ) – Eat! (formal, or to a group)
- Tsafu (ጻፉ) – Write! (formal, or to a group)
Commands Tense Endings and Examples
| Pronoun (Singular) | Prefix | Suffix | Pronoun (Plural) | Prefix | Suffix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| You (m) | - | - | You all | ti- | -achu |
| You (f) | - | -sh | They | yi- | -u |
| You (formal) | - | -u | We | ni- | -n |
| He | yi- | - | |||
| She | ti- | - | |||
| Pronoun | To Eat (Meblat) | To Write (Metsafet) | To Work (Mesrat) | To Take (Mewsed) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| You (m) | bel | tsaf | ser | wesed |
| You (f) | belesh | tsafesh | seresh | wesedesh |
| You (formal) | belu | tsafu | seru | wesedu |
| He | yibel | yitsaf | yiser | yiwesed |
| She | tibel | titsaf | tiser | tiwesed |
| We | nebel | netsaf | neser | newesed |
| You all | belachu | tsafachu | serachu | wesedachu |
| They | yibelu | yitsafu | yiseru | yiwesedu |
Subjunctive
The subjunctive is used to express wishes, desires, or hypothetical situations. It can also function as a polite or indirect command. It is conjugated for all pronouns.Basic Examples of the Subjunctive Form:
- Yibel sero. (ይበል ሥርዓት።) – Let him eat the meal.
- Tibel huna. (ትበል አሁን።) – Let her eat now.
- Nebel sigib. (ንበል ስግብ።) – Let’s eat the food.
- Yitsaf mets’haf. (ይጻፍ መፅሐፍ።) – Let them write the book.
- Tiwesed bet. (ትወስድ ቤት።) – Let her take the house.
Subjunctive within the “I want” Construction:
When the subjunctive is used in a construction like “I want someone to do something,” a prefix endi- (እንዲ-) and slightly modified endings are used to embed the subject (the person who is supposed to perform the action).
| Singular Pronoun | Subjunctive Ending | Example (To eat - Meblat) | Plural Pronoun | Subjunctive Ending | Example (To eat - Meblat) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | N/A | N/A | We | -en | እንዲበላን (endibelan) |
| You (m) | -a | እንዲበላ (endibela) | You all | -achu | እንዲበላችሁ (endibelachu) |
| You (f) | -ash | እንዲበላሽ (endibelash) | They | -u | እንዲበሉ (endibelu) |
| You (formal) | -u | እንዲበሉ (endibelu) | |||
| He | -a | እንዲበላ (endibela) | |||
| She | -at | እንዲበላት (endibelat) | |||
Examples:
Example Sentences:
- Endibela ifeligalehu. (እንዲበላ እፈልጋለሁ።) – I want him to eat.
- Endibelash ifeligalehu. (እንዲበላሽ እፈልጋለሁ።) – I want you (f) to eat.
- Endibelu azizalehu. (እንዲበሉ አዝዛለሁ።) – I commanded them to eat.
- Endibelan ifeligalehu. (እንዲበላን እፈልጋለሁ።) – I want us to eat.
- Endibelachu ifeligalehu. (እንዲበላችሁ እፈልጋለሁ።) – I want you all to eat.
- Endibelat ifeligalehu. (እንዲበላት እፈልጋለሁ።) – I want her to eat.
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