The Imperative

The Imperative Mood is used in issuing commands. It is formed by using the verb in its simplest root form: Listen!, Sit!, Eat! The Imperative Mood in English occurs only in the second person, and the subject - you - is generally not expressly stated, because it is implied. When the speaker gives a command regarding anyone else, it is still directed at the second person as though it were a request for permission, although it may be a rhetorical statement.
This form of the verb is used mainly for giving direct orders, requests, suggestions and in some cases warnings, or even a mixture of all these to a second person. Some examples in English might be:
(You) Look at that.). [order]
Don't (you) leave your valuables in the car. [suggestion]
Bring me another fork please. [request]
Take us to Taksim Square. [order]
(You) Be careful in the traffic. [warning]
he Imperative does not seem so abrupt in Turkish as it is in English, and it would be difficult to upset anyone when using the Imperative.

Formation of the Imperative

Vowel harmony operates on the Imperative Suffixes.

The First Person - let me, let us
The Imperative in the first person singular adds the suffix - (y)ayım/-(y)eyim, - as examples - alayım - let me buy, bekleyeyim - let me wait. The first person plural adds - (y)alım/-(y)elim,

These forms are not considered true imperatives by the grammar experts , they categorise them elsewhere, but I include them here as they are heavily used in daily speech

The Second Person - let you
The second person singular (Familiar and Immediate - for addressing friends or showing urgency) is just the basic verb stem after removing the Infinitive Sign -mek or -mak. This forms The Direct Imperative - the most direct form uses the basic verb stem itself formed by dropping the -mek or -mak suffix from the Infinitive.

Positive Verb (Direct Form)Negative Verb (Direct Form)
Bak - Look!Bakma - Don't look!
Gel - Come!Gelme - Don't come!
This is the most direct form, it is usually used to children or for warnings and in some daily "Formula Speak"

Polite Imperative

There are two forms of the second person plural - Formal Imperative (addressing strangers or being polite) - adds -in to the verb stem and Public Imperative( for notices etc. or being extra polite) adds -iniz to the verb stem.
If, however, you are speaking to someone that you do not know then the direct form is softened by the addition of the suffix -in which is subject to vowel harmony. Then the above examples thus become:

Positive Verb (Polite Form)Negative Verb (Polite Form)
Bakın - Look!Bakmayın - Don't look!
Gelin - Come!Gelmeyin - Don't come!
This Polite Form is used for addressing one person or a number of people in a group.
In all the above forms the Negative Particle -me or -ma always remains in it absolute form - ( it does not close to -mi or -mı etc.) and the Verb Stem is always accented in speech.

Public Imperative

This form is characterized by the addition of the suffix -iniz in its various forms. It is used mainly in Public Notices and signs and also in newspapers and on the television. The examples then become:

Positive Verb (Public Form)Negative Verb (Public Form)
Bakınız - Look!Bakmayınız - Don't look!
Geliniz - Come!Gelmeyiniz - Don't come!
The Public Form is the most polite of all, and can also be used in direct conversation if you wish to be extra polite.
In all the above forms the Negative Particle -me or -ma always remains in it absolute form - ( it does not close to -mi or -mı etc.) and the Verb Stem is always accented in speech.

Some Examples

When speaking the Imperative there is always heavy vocal stress on the Verb Stem as shown below in capital letters.
Yapmayın onu - Don't do that! - Spoken - YAPmayın onu! - Don't DO that!
Çiçeklere doKUNmayınız - Don't touch the flowers. - (Note that this verb - dokunmak - takes a Dative Object in -e or -a)

Third Person Imperative - "Let him do, let him not do"

The Third Person - let him, her
The third person singular adds -sin directly to the verb stem and the third person plural adds -sinler directly to the verb stem - as in the examples below.
(You) Let him do the talking.
(You) Let them build the bridge.
(You) Give him an allowance.
(You) Let sleeping dogs lie.

Turkish is similar as it also uses the second person endings -sin/-sın/-sün/-sun and its plural forms -sinler/-sınlar/-sünler/-sunlar as a request for the third person imperative by attaching this suffix directly to the Verb stem (ie. there are no tense signs like -iyor- or -ar etc.. used)
baksın - (You) let him look
bakmasın - (You) let him not look
girsin - (You) let him enter
girmesinler - (You) let them not enter

The third person form of verbs which is in wide use - especially in "formula speak". We re-iterate that this is formed by adding -sin (singular) or -sinler (plural) directly to the basic verb stem -(there is no tense sign intervening).
Although this form of the verb appears to be of the second person in -sin it actually is not, and also it cannot be construed as so because the -sin suffix is added directly to the verb stem and not to a verb tense base.

olmak - to become, to happen
olsun - let it be
olmasın - let it not be

koşmak - to run - Singular Forms
koşsun - let him run
koşmasın - let him not run

koşmak - to run - Plural Forms
koşsunlar - let them run
koşmasınlar - let them not run

While in the Hamam - (Turkish Bath) you might say - Keseci gelsin - I am ready for the masseur. - [Lit: Let the masseur come]
The Third Person Imperative ending is added directly to the verb stem - Yazsın - Let him write - but if it is added to a tense sign as in - yazıyorsun - then it is the Second Person tense sign - You are writing - Don't get mixed up.!

Some "Daily Turkish" and "Formula Speak" Examples

(1) Sağ ol (Sağol), Sağ olun, Sağ olunuz - Thanks very much [Lit: Be healthy.]
- This form is used a lot to thank some one for some extra service or for something that has put them out. It is far more stronger than - Teşekkür ederim - Thank you. If for instance you ask a stranger for the time you could answer - Sağol - Stay healthy! - As a thank you for his trouble.
(2) Eksik olmayın(ız) - [Lit: Don't go missing!]
This is used for telling someone you like their company and they should "stick around".
(3) Sakın!, Sakınınız!, - Be careful! Watch out! Protect youself!
The Imperative of the reflexive verb - sakınmak - to avoid, to beware - is used as an interjection to warn or advise.
Sakın ha! - Just mind out!, Just watch it!
Onu yapmaktan sakınınız - Be careful of doing that!
Sakın bunu bir daha yapma! - Don't you ever do that (this) again! [This is said to warn somebody of a disaster waiting to happen!]
Do not mix - sakın! - Mind! Beware! (undotted I) - with - sakİn (Dotted İ) - calm, quiet - as in sakİn olun! - calm down..! quieten down.!

Listen to the difference in pronunciation:
Undotted letter "ı" in this word:Speaker Icon Sakın! - "Watch out!
Dotted letter "i" in this word: Speaker IconSakin! - "Calm Down!"

(4) Geçmiş olsun - May it pass (from you)
A formula used to people who are ill - ie: Get better soon - or to people who have had an accident or encountered a problem in life - ie: Bad luck
(5) Kolay gelsin - May it come easy, Take it easy
This is usally said to people who are carrying out a duty or their work..
(6) Neden olmasın? - Why let it not be?
This is the same as - Why not? - in English - See note below:
I myself used to say - Neden yok - for - Why not? - until it was pointed out to me the this actually means - There is no reason!

The Imperative form of - "gelmek - to come"

Singular Persons
1st. geleyim - let me come! - Kasabaya seninle geleyim - Let me come with you to the shops
2nd. gel - come (you)! (familiar) - Buraya gel! - Come (to) here!
3rd. gelsin - let him come! - Mehmet, pikniğe arabayı sürsün - Let Mehmet drive the car to the picnic.

Plural Persons
1st. gelelim - Let us come! - Bu akşam televizyonu seyredelim - Let's watch TV this evening
2nd. gelin (formal) or geliniz (public and more polite) - (you) come..!
3rd. gelsinler - let them come! - Kızlar dans etsinler. - Let the girls dance.

The Accelerative Imperative

Another form of the imperative involves the use of an auxiliary verb vermek - to give - this is dealt with on the auxiliary verb page.
Postaneye koşuverin - Run to the Post Office.
koşuvermek - [The Accelerative verb formed from koşmak - to run + vermek - to give] - to run hurriedly
Onu yapıver! - Do it quickly! [English would say "Just get it done right now!"] from yapmak + vermek

See about the Accelerative.

The Imperative form of - "gitmemek - not to go"

Singular Persons
1st. gitmeyeyim - Let me not go! - Saçımı kestireyim mi kestirmeyeyim mi? - Should I get my hair cut or not? {Let me, Let me not]
2nd. gitme - don't go (you)! (familiar) - Sakın ha, onu yapma! - Careful, don't do that!
3rd. gitmesin - let him not go! - Mehmet, Ayşe'yi öpmesin. - Don't let Mehmet kiss Ayshe

Plural Persons
1st. gitmeyelim - let us not go! - Bugün yüzmeyelim. - Let's not go simming today.
2nd. gitmeyin (formal) or gitmeyiniz (public and more polite) - (you) do not go..! - Sigara İçmeyiniz - No Smoking - [on a public sign]
3rd. gitmesinler - let them not go! - Çocuklar mesajımı görmesinler. - Don't let the children see my message.

Vowel Harmony operates on the Imperative Suffixes
görsün - let him see!
alın - Take (you)!
bulsunlar - let them find!
bulmasınlar - let them not find!
onu yapmayın - Don't do it (you)!
gülünüz - Laugh (you)!

More About "Formula Speak"

There are many other Formula Speak with this aspect of the verb in daily use in Turkey and a good dictionary or phrase book will always contain them. As the barber might say to you when he has finished cutting your hair - Sıhhatler olsun! - Good health to you! - said to one who is having a bath, a haircut or a shave.
I think this is most known expression which is used wrongly by a lot of people. It should be - Sıhhatler olsun. Sıhhat - is the Arabic for - Sağlık. When people say this expression quickly, it sounds like - Saatler olsun - "May the hours (pass)", but it should definitely be - Sıhhatler olsun!

Present Continuous Tense Base Example - yazıyorsun - you are writing
But attached directly to the Basic verb Stem it becomes the - Let him.. let them.. - form of the verb.
yazsın - Let him write yazmasın - Let him not write..

Simple Present Tense Base Example - beklersiniz - you usually wait
Again here attached directly to the Basic verb Stem it becomes the - Let him.. let them.. - form of the verb.
beklesinler - let them wait beklemesinler - let them not wait
These are just a few of the many "Formula Speak" Imperatives in The Turkish Language.

Extended Form of the Imperative - Showing Impatience

There is another form of the imperative which can be a little petulant or sound impatient. It may be used if you have been waiting too long or in cases where notice has not been taken. This form should be used with care by the learner. It is at first best translated as: Why do you? or Why don't you?

Formation of the Extended Imperative (Showing Impatience)
The suffix -sana or -sene is added to the Positive Verb stems, this becomes -sanıza or -senize when addressing a group of people.

Positive Verb - (Impatient Form)
Baksana - Now look here!
Gelsene - Come on then! or Come along!
Otursanıza - Oh DO sit down! or Why don't (you all) sit down!!
Here we can see that although there is only a Positive Form in Turkish we can sometimes translate it as negative in English to arrive at the meaning.