You be quiet!

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diamondcutter

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 21, 2014
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English Teacher
Native Language
Chinese
Home Country
China
Current Location
China
You be quiet!
You be careful!

These two sentences are imperative sentences with their subjects. I’d like to know whether people make a pause between “you” and “be” when they say them.
 
That very much depends on the context in which the words are spoken.
 
In the way that they're written, and with the probable meaning that the writer had in mind, there should be no pause between you and be.

Please improve your questions by telling us where you find any sentences you ask us about and by providing the context within which they are to be used.
 
I can imagine it with a pause. Say, there's a meeting in a conference room, and someone's disrupting it by constantly clapping their mouth flaps chatting with someone. Someone in charge might point their finger at the perpetrator and say "You (there)! Be quiet!"
 
Another possible context for a pause might be uttering it as a rebuttal. Imagine someone told me to be quiet. I could reply with "YOU be quiet."

I might pause slightly after 'you' for extra emphasis.
 
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