Una duda sobre infinitives in commands

A G.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

Una duda sobre infinitives in commands

Apologies, as this is a bit outside the lesson. Can the infinitive ever stand alone as a command in Spanish (without the a + form) in either the negative or positive? I was under the impression that it could, but I don’t specifically remember learning to do so, and I might be transferring from another language I’ve studied. Thanks!

Asked 4 years ago
Marsha C.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor

Yep. You can say. Apagar las luces and no fumar when directing a command to the general public. There is a lesson on this in the B2 grammar section. 

A G.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

Thanks! I guess I just haven’t gotten that one yet.

A thought for the creators of this site: would it make sense to also link to the lesson on using infinitives as general commands, on the same page as this lesson, as a related topic?

I know you try to give us “just the right size” bites to not overwhelm us, and I have found that strategy super effective so far, but these two do seem very closely linked.

InmaNative Spanish expert teacher in Kwiziq

Hola A,

here is the lesson Marsha mentioned. Have a look, and yes, it does make sense to link them so I just did that. 

Gracias y saludos,

Inma

A G. asked:

Una duda sobre infinitives in commands

Apologies, as this is a bit outside the lesson. Can the infinitive ever stand alone as a command in Spanish (without the a + form) in either the negative or positive? I was under the impression that it could, but I don’t specifically remember learning to do so, and I might be transferring from another language I’ve studied. Thanks!

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