manejar Affirmative Imperative Conjugation
manejar — to drive
Direct commands like 'drive!' or 'let's drive!' for manejar.
manejar Affirmative Imperative Forms
When to Use the Affirmative Imperative
Use the imperative to give direct orders or make requests. For example, telling someone to drive the car or suggesting that you all drive somewhere.
Notes on manejar in the Affirmative Imperative
Manejar is regular in the affirmative imperative, except for the 'vosotros' form which keeps the 'r' of the infinitive (manejad). The 'tú' form drops the final 'r' of the infinitive (maneja).
Example Sentences
¡Maneja con cuidado!
Drive carefully!
tú
Señores, manejen por el carril derecho.
Gentlemen, drive in the right lane.
ustedes
Manejemos hasta la playa este fin de semana.
Let's drive to the beach this weekend.
nosotros
¡Maneja tú, yo estoy cansado!
You drive, I'm tired!
tú
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the present subjunctive instead of the affirmative imperative for tú: 'No manejes el coche'.
Correct: The correct command is '¡Maneja el coche!' (Drive the car!). 'No manejes' is a negative command.
Why: Learners often confuse the affirmative tú imperative with the present subjunctive, especially when learning negative commands.
Mistake: Forgetting the 'd' in the vosotros form: 'manejáis'.
Correct: The correct vosotros form is 'manejad'.
Why: The vosotros imperative for -ar verbs adds a 'd' to the stem.
Master Spanish verbs in context
Memorizing tables only gets you so far. Read 200+ illustrated and narrated Spanish stories to see verbs like 'manejar' used naturally — in the tenses you're learning.
Related Tenses
Present
yo: manejo
Habits, actions happening now, or general truths about driving.
Preterite
yo: manejé
Completed past actions: 'I drove', 'you drove' at a specific time.
Imperfect
yo: manejaba
Ongoing or habitual past actions: 'I used to drive', 'was driving'.
Future
yo: manejaré
Actions that will happen: 'I will drive', 'you will drive'.
Conditional
yo: manejaría
Hypotheticals ('would drive'), polite requests, or future-in-the-past.
Present Subjunctive
yo: maneje
Expressing wishes, doubts, or emotions about driving: 'I want you to drive...'.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: manejara
Past hypotheticals or wishes, like 'if I drove...' or 'I wish you would drive...'.
Negative Imperative
yo: no manejes
Negative commands like 'don't drive!' for manejar, using the present subjunctive.