Do it 〜なさい

Meaning

A firm but polite command — used by a parent to a child, a teacher to a student, or in exam instructions.

Formation

[verb ます-stem] + なさい · 食べます → 食べなさい

Notes

Softer than the plain imperative (食べろ) but still top-down — never say it to a superior. It is the standard wording of written test instructions: 次の質問に答えなさい. おやすみなさい and ごめんなさい are frozen forms of the same ending.

Examples

早（はや）く起（お）きなさい。

Get up, quickly.

Breakdown

はやく早く quickly おきなさい起きなさい get up (command)

野菜（やさい）も食（た）べなさい。

Eat your vegetables too.

Breakdown

やさい野菜 vegetables も too たべなさい食べなさい eat (command)

次（つぎ）の質問に答（しつもんにこた）えなさい。

Answer the following questions. (standard exam wording)

Breakdown

つぎのしつもん次の質問 the following questions に (target) こたえなさい答えなさい answer

もう遅（おそ）いから、寝（い）なさい。

It's late, so go to bed.

Breakdown

もうおそいもう遅い it is already late から so ねなさい寝なさい go to bed

静（しず）かにしなさい。

Be quiet.

Breakdown

しずかに静かに quietly しなさい do (command)

⚠️ Often confused with

命令形

Plain imperative 命令形

The blunt command form — "Do it!". Strong, and rarely appropriate in conversation.

[verb, plain] + な

Plain prohibitive 〜な

The blunt negative command — "Don't ~!".