elegir Negative Imperative Conjugation
elegir — to choose
The negative imperative always uses the present subjunctive forms: no elijas, no elija, no elijamos, no elijáis, no elijan.
elegir Negative Imperative Forms
When to Use the Negative Imperative
Use this to tell someone NOT to choose something, like 'Don't choose that one!'
Notes on elegir in the Negative Imperative
Because it uses subjunctive forms, every form has the 'j' spelling change and the 'i' stem change.
Example Sentences
No elijas esa opción, es peligrosa.
Don't choose that option, it's dangerous.
tú
No elijamos el primer hotel que veamos.
Let's not choose the first hotel we see.
nosotros
No elijan todavía, esperen un poco.
Don't choose yet (plural), wait a bit.
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Saying 'no elige' instead of 'no elijas'.
Correct: The correct form is 'no elijas'.
Why: Negative commands must use the subjunctive, not the indicative.
Mistake: Writing 'no eligáis' for vosotros.
Correct: The correct form is 'no elijáis'.
Why: You must include the 'j' to keep the pronunciation correct.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: elijo
Elegir is a stem-changing verb (e > i) in all forms except nosotros and vosotros, plus a spelling change in the 'yo' form.
Preterite
yo: elegí
Elegir has a stem change (e > i) in the third person: eligió and eligieron.
Imperfect
yo: elegía
The imperfect of elegir is regular: elegía, elegías, elegía, elegíamos, elegíais, elegían.
Future
yo: elegiré
The future tense of elegir is regular: elegiré, elegirás, elegirá, elegiremos, elegiréis, elegirán.
Conditional
yo: elegiría
The conditional of elegir is regular: elegiría, elegirías, elegiría, elegiríamos, elegiríais, elegirían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: elija
The present subjunctive uses the 'i' stem change and the 'j' spelling in all forms: elija, elijas, elija, elijamos, elijáis, elijan.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: eligiera
The imperfect subjunctive is based on the third-person preterite 'eligieron', resulting in: eligiera, eligieras, eligiera, eligiéramos, eligierais, eligieran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: elige
The imperative uses the 'i' stem change for most commands: elige (tú), elija (usted), elijamos (nosotros), elegid (vosotros), elijan (ustedes).