In Vietnamese, we use đi to form imperative sentences, i.e., requests, commands, and orders.
Structure
Place đi at the end of the sentence to turn it imperative.
verb + … + đi
In Vietnamese, it’s common to include the subject (“you”, “we”, etc.) to sound polite or show respect to seniors, but it’s also common to omit the subject if it’s not really necessary. When the subject is “we”, it’s equivalent to “let’s” in English.
This structure can express varying degrees of politeness: a casual invitation, a polite request, an earnest plea, a hostile command or an authoritative order. It all depends on the speaker’s attitude and tone of voice, which can be indicated by the full stop “.” or the exclamation mark “!” when necessary.
Examples
- Đến đi.Come. (Just come / feel free to come.)
- Ăn đi.Eat it. (Just eat it / feel free to eat it.)
- Ăn đi!Eat it! (Do it or you’ll get in trouble.)
- Nghỉ một chút đi.Take a break. / Let’s take a break.
- Mình cưới nhau đi.Let’s get married.
- Cút đi!Get lost!
- Ra ngoài đi!Get out!