Personal direct object pronouns in Spanish (me, him, her, them)
Spanish
In today's lesson, we are going to learn about direct object pronouns in Spanish. Let's get started!
Video
Podcast
What is a direct object pronoun?
A direct object pronoun is a type of pronoun that replaces a noun or pronoun in a sentence.
- Os necesitamos en la reunión. (We need you at the meeting.)
- Ellos nos invitaron al concierto. (They invited us to the concert.)
- Lo compré ayer. (I bought it yesterday.)
How to use direct object pronouns in Spanish
Direct object pronouns before the verb
Direct object pronouns can be placed before the verb as separate words.
| Original sentence | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Veo el libro. (I see the book.) | Lo veo. | I see it. |
| Ella come la fruta. (She eats the fruit.) | Ella la come. | She eats it. |
Direct object pronouns after the verb
There are cases where the pronoun is attached to the ending of the verb. There are three different use cases.
After the verb: giving an order (imperative)
The pronoun and verb are combined when giving an order to someone.
| Original sentence | Spanish | English |
| Limpia tu habitación. (Clean your room.) | Límpiala. | Clean it. |
| Lava los platos. (Wash the dishes.) | Lávalos. | Wash them. |
After the verb: infinitive
When using the infinitive form of a verb, the direct object pronoun is attached at the end.
| Original sentence | Spanish | English |
| Quiero comprar el vestido. (I want to buy the dress.) | Quiero comprarlo. | I want to buy it. |
| Necesito estudiar la lección. (I need to study the lesson.) | Necesito estudiarla. | I need to study it. |
After the verb: gerund
The verb and pronoun come together when using a gerund.
| Original sentence | Spanish | English |
| Estoy buscando las llaves. (I am looking for the keys.) | Estoy buscándolas. | I am looking for them. |
| Estaba escribiendo una carta. (I was writing a letter.) | Estaba escribiéndola. | I was writing it. |
Depending on the use case, direct object pronouns can be placed before or after the verb.
List of direct object pronouns
It’s important not to confuse direct object pronouns with indirect object pronouns.
Singular direct object pronouns
We will start with singular direct object pronouns:
| Direct object (singular) | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Me (Me) | Me llamó ayer. | He called me yesterday. |
| Te (You) | Te vi en el mercado. | I saw you at the market. |
| Lo (It or Him) | Lo compró en la tienda. | She bought it at the store. |
| La (It or Her) | La llamé hace poco. | I called her recently. |
Plural direct object pronouns
Let’s continue with the plural forms of direct object pronouns:
| Direct object (plural) | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Nos (Us) | Nos avisaron tarde. | They told us late. |
| Os (You) | Os veo mañana. | See you tomorrow. |
| Los (Them) | No los toques. | Don't touch them. |
| Las (Them) | Las vimos en el parque. | We saw them in the park. |
Listening exericise
In this dialogue we will put into practice the direct object pronouns in Spanish.
| Spanish | English | |
| María | ¿Hiciste la tarea de literatura? | Did you do the literature homework? |
| Daniel | Sí, la hice esta mañana. | Yes, I did it this morning. |
| María | ¿Y las tareas de ciencias? | And the science assignments? |
| Daniel | No las he hecho todavía, pero las haré después. | I haven't done them yet, but I'll do them later. |
| María | ¿Nos ayudas a estudiar para el examen? | Will you help us study for the exam? |
| Daniel | Sí, os ayudaré esta tarde. | Yes, I'll help you this afternoon. |
| María | ¡Gracias! Te lo agradecemos mucho. | Thank you! We really appreciate it. |
Direct object pronouns answer the question "what" or "whom" in relation to the verb.
Key takeaways
Here is a quick summary of this lesson.
- A direct object pronoun is a type of pronoun that replaces a noun or pronoun in a sentence.
- Direct object pronouns answer the question "what" or "whom" in relation to the verb.
- Direct object pronouns can be placed before or after the verb.
Important! Practise this lesson with a teacher.
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