Learn how to express a command in Spanish using Gerundio/Spanish present participle
In colloquial Spanish, the gerund (-ing form) is often used to express a command that indicates the start of a process. It is mainly used with specific verbs; the most common verbs are "andar", "caminar", "circular", "marchar".
Here are some examples:
It is very common in bars and restaurants to hear the waiter say ¡Marchando! after taking a customer's order as a way of letting the kitchen know that they need to start preparing that particular order. For example, a customer says:
Me pone dos cervezas y dos tapas de calamares, por favor.
Can I have two beers and two squid tapas, please?
The person taking their order can reply to both the customer and Antonio in the kitchen:
It is also common to use the gerund in a stronger command, with a threatening tone and an expectation that the action in question must be done immediately, using this construction:
ya + estar + gerund
For example:
There is a colloquial set phrase in Spanish, indicating to get on with things, to move on:
This is used in any context to express the desire to keep things moving.
See also Using preposition a + infinitive to express a command in Spanish and Using que + the present subjunctive in Spanish to to express a wish/command
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