Direct and Indirect Object

PronounsWhen, why and

how

Pronoun - - a definitionA pronoun is a word that takes the

place of a noun. Pronouns can be in one of three cases: Subject, Object, or Possessive

Direct Object Pronouns

Direct Objects Pronounsme Yote Túlo, la Él, ella, usted, (it)nos Nosotrosos Vosotroslos, las

Ellos, ellas, ustedes, (them)

What is a direct object? It is the object that receives the

action of the verbA direct object can be a person or a

thing It answers the question: “What” or

“Whom” with regard to what the subject of the sentence is doing.

EjemplosTito vendió el carro.“What” did Tito sell? el carroTherefore “el carro” is the direct object.

Tania pateó Martín.“Whom” did Tania kick? MartínTherefore “Martín” is the direct object.

Indirect Object Pronouns

Indirect Objects Pronouns

me Yote Túle/se Él, ella, usted, (it)nos Nosotrosos Vosotrosles/se Ellos, ellas, ustedes, (them)

What is an indirect object? It is the person that receives the

direct objectA direct object is a person It answers the question: “To

whom” or “For whom” the action of the verb is performed.

EjemplosMamá dio la carta a Marco.“To whom” did Mamá give the letter? MarcoTherefore “Marco” is the indirect object.

Enrique compró flores para Anita. “For whom” did Enrique buy flowers? AnitaTherefore “Anita” is the indirect object.

Placement

Direct ObjectsAffirmative sentences with ONE verb:Pablo come vegetales.¿Qué come Pablo? VegetalesTherefore, vegetales is the direct object. It is masculine and plural, so its pronoun is “los”. The pronoun is placed before the verb.Pablo los come.

Direct ObjectsNegative sentences with ONE verb:

Pablo no come vegetales.Pablo no los come.Pablo nunca come los vegetales.Pablo nunca los come.

Direct ObjectsAffirmative sentences with TWO verbs: In an affirmative sentence with two verbs, the first verb is conjugated and the second stays in the infinitive form. There are two possiblitiels: Place the pronoun before the first verb.Puedes beber la leche.La puedes beber.b) Add the pronoun to the second verb, the infinitive.Puedes beberla.

Direct ObjectsNegative sentences with TWO verbs:In an negative sentence with two verbs, the first verb is conjugated and the second stays in the infitive form. There are two possiblitiels: a) Place the pronoun between the word “no” (or other negative words) and the first verb. No la puedes beber.b) Add the pronoun to the second verb, the infinitive. No puedes beberla.

Direct ObjectsTo emphasize or contrast direct object pronouns that refer to a person, add a phrase using “a” with the personal pronoun. ¿Conoces a David y a Victoria?Lo conozco a él, pero no a ella.

Direct ObjectsIn the progressive tense (ING FORMS) there are two possibilities for placing the pronoun:a) Place the pronoun before the verb “estar”.Estoy leyendo el nuevo libro de Gabriel García Márquez. Lo estoy leyendo.b) Add the pronoun to the gerund. Estoy leyéndolo.

Direct ObjectsWhen constructing an affirmative command, attach the pronoun to the end of the verb. Add an accent on the appropriate syllable unless it is a command that is a single syllable. Pon la correspondencia en la mesa por favor.Ponla en la mesa por favor.Compra la leche hoy por la tarde.Cómprala hoy por la tarde.

Direct ObjectsWhen constructing a negative command, place the pronoun between the word “no” (or other negative words) and the command.

No pongas la correspondencia en la mesa.No la pongas en la mesa, por favor.

Indirect ObjectsWhen two pronouns are in the same setnence, both should be placed before the verb. The first pronoun is the indirect object pronoun followed by the direct object.

IO + DO + Verb

Indirect ObjectsIndirect object pronouns “le” and “les” change to “se” when they are placed along side the direct object pronouns: lo, la, los and las.

Romeo escribe un poema a Julieta.Romeo se lo escribe.

Indirect ObjectsIf two pronouns are attached to an infinitive, an accent should be added to the appropriate syllable.

Pedro quiere dar la noticia a Gabriela.Pedro quiere dársela.

¡Vamos a practicar!

PrácticaMaría envía una carta a Pablo.

Objeto directo:

Objeto indirecto:

una carta

Pablo

Marta se la envía.

PrácticaAna compró un regalo para Ben.

Objeto directo:

Objeto indirecto:

un regalo

Ben

Ana se lo compró.

PrácticaJosé dio un beso a Emilia.

Objeto directo:

Objeto indirecto:

un beso

Emilia

José se lo dio.