Imperatives worksheets
26 worksheets, 4 lessons and 1 shadowing script · Modals & verb patterns
Start here — 5 free samples
Free to try: open, print and play them — no account needed.
Imperatives worksheets
26 printable worksheets with answer keys; the 24 most used, easiest level first.
Imperatives lessons
4 ready lessons for the four skills: teach on the board, set online or print.
Imperatives shadowing
Listen, repeat, record and compare: short scripts for pronunciation and fluency.
About Imperatives
The imperative is the base form of the verb with no subject, used for instructions, orders, advice, warnings and invitations: Open your books. Turn left at the bank. Have a seat. The negative uses don't (Don't touch that!), and let's + base verb makes a suggestion that includes the speaker: Let's go to the park.
It is taught from the very first lessons with young learners through classroom language, and at A1–A2 through directions, recipes and rules. Learners add a subject (*You open the door), use no or not instead of don't (*No run! *Not touch!), or sound too direct in requests, where please or Could you…? softens the tone.
This page includes printable imperatives worksheets with answer keys, which can be printed as PDFs or set online via a class link.
Teaching tips: Imperatives
- Play Simon Says or other Total Physical Response games so young learners respond physically to commands.
- Use recipes, maps and instruction leaflets as authentic contexts for sequences of imperatives.
- Write class rules together, contrasting positive imperatives (Listen carefully) with negative ones (Don't shout).
- Watch for *Don't to run and *Not run: the negative is always don't + base verb.
Questions teachers ask
Is the imperative rude in English?
Not necessarily. It is normal for instructions, recipes, directions and offers (Help yourself), but requests to people you don't know well sound more polite as questions: Could you…? Would you mind…?
What's the difference between let's and let us?
Let's makes a suggestion that includes the speaker (Let's start). Let us is either very formal or a request for permission: Please let us go.
How do I teach imperatives to very young learners?
Through action: classroom routines (Stand up, sit down, line up), songs and Simon Says, with a gesture for each verb before any written work.