Pronombres de objeto directo en Español

Direct object pronouns in Spanish

Direct object pronouns in Spanish are used to replace the object in a sentence. They allow us to talk about a person, place, or thing without repeating its name. We introduce the subject at the beginning of the sentence and then follow it with a direct object pronoun.

Personal pronouns of the direct object

Singular

me – yo

te – tú

lo – usted/ él/ una cosa masculina

la – usted/ ella/ una cosa femenina

Plural

nos – nosotros/as

os – vosotros/as

los – ustedes/ ellos/ cosas masculinas

las – ustedes/ ellas/ cosas femeninas

Considere los siguientes ejemplos:

  • Ayer vi a Juan y me di cuenta de que lo extrañaba. (Yesterday I saw Juan and I realised I missed him.)
  • ¿Quién quiere traer las bebidas? –Las traigo yo. (Who wants to bring the drinks? –I will bring them.)

However, Indirect object pronouns have a different role. They are used when the object is indirectly affected by the action, but it is not the main object in the sentence.

Considere los siguientes ejemplos:

  • Charlie compró una porción de pizza. (Charlie bought a slice of pizza.)
  • Charlie compró una porción de pizza para ti. (Charlie bought a slice of pizza for you.)

In the first sentence, the pizza is the direct object as it is the main recipient of the action. In the second sentence, (you) serves as the indirect object pronoun since you are indirectly affected by Charlie’s act of buying the pizza.

While direct and indirect object pronouns are similar, they have distinct roles. In Spanish, they are used as follows:

  1. ¿Ves mucho a María? –No, últimamente no la veo mucho. (You see a lot of Maria? –No, lately I don’t see her much.)
  2. Tenemos hambre, ¿Nos invitas a comer? (We´re hungry, ¿You invite us to eat?)
  3. ¿Conoces al marido de Mónica? –No, no lo conozco. (Do you know Maria’s husband? –No, I don’t know him) ¿Y a los padres de Javier? –No, tampoco los conozco. (And Javier´s parents? –No, I don’t know them either.)
  4. Este jersey me gusta mucho y no es caro, me lo llevo. (I like this jumper a lot and it’s not expensive, I´ll take it.)
  5. Me marido me llama por teléfono todos los días. (My husband calls me every day.)
  6. ¿Tus hijos ven la tele? –No, no la ven mucho. (Do your children watch TV? –No, they don’t watch much.)
  7. ¿Viene a tomar algo?, Te intimo. (Are you coming for a drink?, I´m inviting you.)

Direct object pronouns in Spanish serve as invaluable tools for efficient and concise communication. By replacing the object in a sentence, they enable us to discuss people, places, or things without unnecessary repetition.