Today’s page contains two Imperative Verbs. An Imperative Verb is a Verb used to give a command. There is an example in the heading of this very post; read – in this context - is an Imperative Verb. Do it!
So what does an Imperative Verb look like in Latin? Well, it looks quite a bit like a Present Tense Verb, which is not at all surprising. After all, if you are telling someone to do something, there is no time quite like the now.
Take lego, legere, legi, lectum for example. lego means I read. To order one person to read we simply say lege! If there is more than one, we say legite! It’s that simple. In our story, Jessica asked Miranda to trust her; Trust me! she said. The Verb that means trust is credo, credere, credidi, creditum. The appropriate Imperative, therefore, is crede, as Miranda is only one person. Jessica would have said credite if she had been speaking to a pair or a crowd. The mi, by the way, means me.
Later Jessica asked Miranda to allow her to leave; allow me! she said. The Verb that means allow is sino, sinere, sivi, situm. The appropriate Imperative, therefore, is sine, as Miranda is only one person. Jessica would have said sinite if she had been speaking to a pair or a crowd. The me, by the way, means me and fugere means to escape.
You may well be wondering why both mi and me mean me. It’s a good question for another time.
Jessica was watching Miranda intently. ‘I am not your enemy, Miranda. Trust me, I beg you. Allow me to escape.’ Jessica again tried to run.