proteger Affirmative Imperative Conjugation
proteger — to protect
The imperative uses 'g' for 'tú' and 'vosotros', but 'j' for 'usted' and 'nosotros': protege, proteja, protejamos, proteged, protejan.
proteger Affirmative Imperative Forms
When to Use the Affirmative Imperative
Use this to give direct orders to protect someone or something.
Notes on proteger in the Affirmative Imperative
The 'tú' and 'vosotros' forms use 'g' because the endings are 'e' and 'ed'. The other forms use 'j' because the endings start with 'a'.
Example Sentences
¡Protege a tu hermano!
Protect your brother!
tú
Proteja su piel del sol.
Protect your skin from the sun.
usted
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Writing 'protega' for the formal command.
Correct: proteja
Why: The formal command (usted) is taken from the subjunctive, which requires a 'j' to keep the sound consistent.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: protejo
Proteger has a spelling change in the 'yo' form: protejo, proteges, protege, protegemos, protegéis, protegen.
Preterite
yo: protegí
The preterite of proteger is regular: protegí, protegiste, protegió, protegimos, protegisteis, protegieron.
Imperfect
yo: protegía
The imperfect of proteger is regular: protegía, protegías, protegía, protegíamos, protegíais, protegían.
Future
yo: protegeré
The future of proteger is regular: protegeré, protegerás, protegerá, protegeremos, protegeréis, protegerán.
Conditional
yo: protegería
The conditional of proteger is regular: protegería, protegerías, protegería, protegeríamos, protegeríais, protegerían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: proteja
The present subjunctive of proteger uses 'j' in all forms: proteja, protejas, proteja, protejamos, protejáis, protejan.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: protegiera
The imperfect subjunctive of proteger is regular: protegiera, protegieras, protegiera, protegiéramos, protegierais, protegieran.
Negative Imperative
yo: no protejas
The negative imperative always uses 'j': no protejas, no proteja, no protejamos, no protejáis, no protejan.