empezar Affirmative Imperative Conjugation
empezar — to start
The imperative uses 'empieza' for informal commands and 'empiece' for formal ones.
empezar Affirmative Imperative Forms
When to Use the Affirmative Imperative
Use the imperative to give direct orders or invitations to start something.
Notes on empezar in the Affirmative Imperative
The 'tú' form (empieza) uses the present indicative 'boot' stem. The 'usted' and 'nosotros' forms use the subjunctive 'c' spelling change.
Example Sentences
¡Empieza a comer antes de que se enfríe!
Start eating before it gets cold!
tú
Empiece usted primero, por favor.
You start first, please.
usted
Empecemos la reunión ahora.
Let's start the meeting now.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using 'empeza' for the tú command.
Correct: empieza
Why: The affirmative tú command usually matches the third-person singular of the present tense, which has the 'ie' change.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: empiezo
Empezar is a stem-changing verb where the 'e' becomes 'ie' in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
Preterite
yo: empecé
Empezar has a spelling change in the 'yo' form (empecé) but is otherwise regular in the preterite.
Imperfect
yo: empezaba
Empezar is regular in the imperfect: empezaba, empezabas, empezaba, empezábamos, empezabais, empezaban.
Future
yo: empezaré
The future tense of empezar is completely regular: empezaré, empezarás, empezará, etc.
Conditional
yo: empezaría
The conditional of empezar is regular: empezaría, empezarías, empezaría, empezaríamos, empezaríais, empezarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: empiece
The present subjunctive of empezar features both a stem change (ie) and a spelling change (z to c).
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: empezara
The imperfect subjunctive of empezar is based on the 3rd person plural preterite: empezara, empezaras, empezara...
Negative Imperative
yo: no empieces
Negative commands for empezar always use the present subjunctive forms: no empieces, no empiece, no empecemos.