たまえ
- 1Urging a subordinate to act quickly or get on with something.Ex. 1
- 2Giving a direct instruction to someone of lower status.Ex. 2
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Spoken by men in positions of authority, such as bosses, professors or senior colleagues, to people below them, often together with 君. Today it sounds dated or stiff and is common in fiction and period dramas. It is more authoritative and masculine than なさい. Unlike the casual, familiar stem + な (食べな), たまえ keeps a lofty, formal-sounding air of superiority.
Do not use たまえ toward superiors, customers or strangers, because it clearly marks the speaker as higher in status.
Note that たまえ sounds old-fashioned and masculine, so in everyday modern speech it can seem pompous or theatrical.
- なさいN4「なさい」 attaches in the same way and likewise expresses a command from a superior to a subordinate, but it is not limited to men, sounds neutral and common, and is typically used by parents toward children. It also appears in exam instructions and set greetings such as 「おやすみなさい」, where it cannot be replaced with 「たまえ」.
- なN5「な」 expresses prohibition ('must not ...'), the opposite of 「たまえ」's sense of telling someone to do something, so the two cannot be interchanged. 「な」 attaches to the dictionary form (行くな) and sounds rough and direct, also appearing in slogans, while 「たまえ」 is old-fashioned but somewhat milder.
- ようではないかN2「ようではないか」 calls on the audience to act together with the speaker, attaches to a verb's volitional form, and is mostly used in formal settings such as speeches. 「たまえ」 is a command from a superior to a subordinate, or an urging to do something, and attaches to the ます-stem (the ます form minus ます), so the two cannot be interchanged.
- べきだN2「べきだ」 expresses a judgment of what 'should' be done based on reason and common sense, need not be directed at the listener, has a regretful use as 「べきだった」, attaches to the dictionary form, and is neutral in register. 「たまえ」 is a direct command from a superior to a subordinate, attaching to the ます-stem, so the two cannot be interchanged.
Unlike たまえ, なさい is a gender-neutral command typical of parents and teachers. な is either a prohibition after the dictionary form (行くな) or a casual, familiar prompt after the stem (食べな), and it lacks the lofty tone of superiority. ようではないか invites others to act together ("let's ~"), and べきだ states what one should do rather than giving a direct order.
