How often are Nosotros Commands used?

Question

I was curious as to how often Nosotros commands are used instead of other alternatives. For example, I was listening to a podcast where one person said "Let's meet tomorrow" in English, and the other responded "Quedamos mañana". I was expecting her to respond "Quedemos mañana". It seems like often the present indicative is used to make suggestions of what to do, instead of using the nosotros commands? Would the present indicative be more of a gentle suggestion? Thanks!

Answer 1

Philsjwfu:

Very good question and I don't really have a good answer for you, but I do have another possible take on your little dialog above. I may be "all wet" on this and a native will set me straight, but I thought I would mention my thought anyway.

In Spanish, the present indicative is frequently used, instead of either the informal or formal future, but with a future meaning, especially when a time period such as tomorrow is used.

So...maybe the above is really saying.

Lets meet tomorrow.

(Yes,) we will meet tomorrow. (Agreeing to the suggestion, rather than repeating it.)

Not having the full context of the podcast, I can't even be sure if this makes sense, but I think it is one possibility.

Thanks, I think the context was just a situation where person 2 would repeat exactly what person 1 said, rather than responding to the question itself. Starting around 10:19...https://spanishobsessed.com/lessons/beginners-15/Thanks! - philsjwfu, Jun 5, 2017

You could use context.reverso.com to check frequency of usage. Just enter - Let's meet and you will see the many ways it is said. Some are present indicative, some present subjunctive, some future, etc. - DilKen, Jun 5, 2017

Nos vemos, (present indicative) which is more frequently used as "see you later/tomorrow" was number one in count, but there were tons of 3rd person plural present subjunctive as well. - DilKen, Jun 5, 2017

From a quick look at the first page of results, taking all the possible verbs that can be used, the present subjunctive use far exceeds the other tenses. - DilKen, Jun 5, 2017

Answer 2

I think nosotros commands are much less used than other ways. We use much more "vamos a " than nosotros commands.

Answer 3

Hi Phil!

Yes, very good question.

It's actually quite simple. If you say "¡Quedemos mañana!" (command -let's..) you are giving an order, and although it's not your intention to be rude or commanding, there is always a shade of authority, except for some specific cases.

On the other hand "¿Quedamos mañana?" is more delicate and neutral. Good equivalents would be:

• ¿Podemos quedar mañana?

• ¿Te gustaría quedar mañana?

• Me gustaría que quedáramos mañana. ¿Qué te parece?