Direct Objects and Direct Object Pronouns
In English, the Direct Object follows the verb
in an active voice sentence. What does that mean exactly? Let's
take a look at an example:
Now let's examine the components of the sentence.
| I= subject |
| steal= transitive verb (transitive verbs
transfer action to an object & require an object) |
| the car= direct object (receives the action
of the verb): The car is what I steal. |
Now replace the Direct Object [the car] with
a Direct Object Pronoun [it]:
It is a direct object pronoun ("it" refers to
what was stolen - in this case, a car)
Now let's look at the same sentence in Spanish:
Again, let's examine the components of the sentence.
| Yo= the subject |
| robo= transitive
verb |
| el carro= the
direct object |
-
Now we replace the Direct Object [un
carro] with a Direct Object Pronoun [lo].
-
We use lo because
carro
is masculine and singular. Lo = it (un
carro) [See the chart below for all of the direct object pronouns.]
-
*
Yo
robo [lo].
In Spanish you must place the direct object
pronoun directly in front of the active (conjugated) verb:
-
even when we have compound verbs:
(Yo) lo voy a robar.
- OR we attach it to the end of a present participle
or infinitive:
-
Yo estoy robándolo.
(present participle)
-
Yo voy a robarlo.
(infinitive)
-
Pronouns can also be attached to Affirmative
commands-
click here if you want
information on commands and pronouns.
We put an accent on robando
to preserve the pronunciation. If you aren't sure where to put
the accent, cover up the direct object pronoun and say the participle naturally:
"roBANdo ". The vowel in the
stressed syllable is where you put the accent.
The
Direct Object pronouns:
| Yo |
me |
nos |
Nosotros |
| Tu |
te |
os |
Vosotros |
Él, Usted (male)
["it" masculine] |
lo |
los |
Ellos, Ustedes
["those things" masculine] |
Ella Usted (female)
["it" feminine] |
la |
las |
Ellas, Ustedes
["those things" feminine] |
Copyright ©
2000 Deborah R. Lemon.
All rights reserved.