Commands (The Imperative)

When we omit the subject of a sentence in English, we create a command (also called the “imperative” mood). 

There is a big difference between the following pairs of sentences.

1) “I go to school” (a statement) and

2) “Go to school” (a command).

Sentence one tells a truth about my life:  at present, I am a student.  Sentence two is a command for the person to whom I speak or write:  it commands that person to go to school.

3) “You eat kimchi with rice for breakfast” (a statement) and

4) “Eat kimchi with rice for breakfast” (a command).

In sentence three, I am telling you something that I have observed: I am noting your usual breakfast.  In sentence four, I am telling you what to eat for your breakfast.

5) “She goes to work at nine o’clock every day” (a statement) and

6) “Go to work at nine o’clock every day” (a command).

Sentence five tells a truth about a female’s life: she goes to work at a regular hour of nine o’clock.  Sentence six orders the person to whom I speak or write to go to work everyday at a certain time.

When we omit the subject in English, we make a command.  More specifically, the command is for "you"—either the person who reads the sentence or the person to whom we speak.  Why is this important?

When we text on a mobile phone, we often omit the subject:

7) “c u l8r” (see you later)

8) “meet u @ 9” (meet you at nine o’clock)

9) “ttyl” (talk to you later)

These three common texting phrases are (grammatically incorrect) commands.  Sentence seven is actually a command for the person to see him or herself later.  Sentence eight is a command for the person to meet him or herself at nine o’clock.  Sentence nine is a command for the person to talk to him or herself later. 

Sentences seven to nine are absolutely fine for texting (or casual conversation) because we need to save space and time when we text.  Other texters will understand what we mean by these phrases: 7) I will see you later; 8) I will meet you at nine o’clock; and 9) I will talk to you later.  However, these three texting phrases are inappropriate for any type of formal writing.  

Resources

The Writing Center at University of Ottawa usefully explains the different types of sentences.

Quiz

The BBC’s Skillwise has a three-level quiz for the imperative.