We're finally here: now we get to work with both, direct and indirect objects at the same time.
If you haven’t seen my previous classes, this is a good time to do so.
But if you're feeling lazy, here’s a quick and easy summary:
To find the direct object, the thing or person who receives the action directly, you must ask the verb the following questions: What? / Whom? The answer to one of those questions will be the direct object.
Yo compro libros. (I buy books)
What do I buy?
Libros = direct object
The pronouns to replace it are: me, te, lo, la, nos, los (masc.), las (fem.)
Yo compro libros: Yo los compro (I buy them)
The indirect object is usually a person who receives the direct object.
Yo compro libros para los niños. (I buy books for the children)
For whom do I buy the books?
Para los niños = indirect object
When there is an indirect object, we will always use the following pronouns: me, te, le, nos, les; so, the previous sentence is incomplete, to make it sound natural, I add the pronoun:
Yo les compro libros a los niños. (I buy books for them the children)
Mixing Indirect Object Pronouns (IOP) with Direct Object Pronouns (DOP)
Pronouns can be combined in Spanish, just like in English in sentences like "the children want candy and I buy it for them" or "I want a piece of cake and he gives it to me," etc.
In Spanish, the order of pronouns changes slightly in relation to English. First, pronouns are placed before the conjugated verb, and, additionally, there is a hierarchy where indirect object pronouns come first and direct object pronouns come second: IOP + DOP.
Considering this, the previous sentences, if translated literally from Spanish to English, would be:
The children want candy and I for them it buy.
I want a piece of cake and he to me it gives.
Funny, right?
Here's a list of all the pronouns for us to use as reference in the following examples, because next section is all about practicing, there's literally no other way to understand this topic. (Print this list to keep in your Spanish notes, you will thank me).
You'll understand everything with these examples
Example 1: I wanted a laptop for my birthday, and my parents bought it for me.
Yo quería una laptop para mi cumpleaños y mis padres __ __ compraron.
Before we add the pronouns, let’s identify the direct and indirect objects. YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO FIND THE DIRECT OBJECT FIRST.
My parents bought, what? The laptop, which in Spanish, is a feminine singular object. The pronoun that corresponds to it from my list of direct objects is la. I must place it second because the DOP goes second.
Example 1: I wanted a laptop for my birthday, and my parents bought it for me.
Yo quería una laptop para mi cumpleaños y mis padres __ la compraron.
Then, we identify the indirect object: my parents bought it, for whom? For me, which in my IOP list is me.
Example 1: I wanted a laptop for my birthday, and my parents bought it for me.
Yo quería una laptop para mi cumpleaños y mis padres me la compraron.
Example 2: I have a secret, but I don't want to tell it to you.
Yo tengo un secreto, pero no __ __ quiero contar.
We identify the direct object first: I don't want to tell, what? The secret, masculine singular in Spanish, for which the pronoun is lo.
Example 2: I have a secret, but I don't want to tell it to you.
Yo tengo un secreto, pero no ___ lo quiero contar.
Now the indirect object: To whom don't I want to tell the secret? To you: te, from my IOP list. So, the final sentence is:
Example 2: I have a secret, but I don't want to tell it to you.
Yo tengo un secreto, pero no te lo quiero contar.
Example 3: We don’t understand the verbs in Spanish, but the teacher already explained them to us.
No entendemos los verbos en español, pero la profesora ya __ __ explicó.
The teacher explained, what? The verbs, masculine plural, direct object pronoun: los.
Example 3: We don’t understand the verbs in Spanish, but the teacher already explained them to us.
No entendemos los verbos en español, pero la profesora ya __ los explicó.
Now, we find the indirect object: To whom did she explain? To us. Indirect object pronoun: nos. The final sentence is:
Example 3: We don’t understand the verbs in Spanish, but the teacher already explained them to us.
No entendemos los verbos en español, pero la profesora ya nos los explicó.
Time for the real nightmare: is it LE, LES, or SE?
Now it’s time for third person: le and les.
In this case, we do something special. Let’s look at the example, and please, pay close attention.
Example 4: The girl has a question, and her mother answers it to her.
La chica tiene una pregunta y su madre __ __ responde.
In this case, the direct object is the question: la.
Example 4: The girl has a question, and her mother answers it to her.
La chica tiene una pregunta y su madre __ la responde.
And the indirect object is the girl, for whom the corresponding indirect pronoun is le.
Example 4: The girl has a question, and her mother answers it to her.
La chica tiene una pregunta y su madre le la responde.
However, this combination of le la sounds a bit awkward, so we make a small but important change to avoid these two sounds together. What we do is "disguise" the pronouns le, les as se.
Therefore, only when le and les come before the direct object pronouns lo, la, los, las, we need to change them to se.
Example 4: The girl has a question, and her mother answers it to her.
La chica tiene una pregunta y su madre le la responde.
The correct final sentence is:
La niña tiene una pregunta y su madre se la responde.
Example 5: The students asked the teacher a difficult question, and she answered it to them.
Los estudiantes le* hicieron una pregunta difícil a la profesora y ella __ __ respondió.
* Remember you always use le and les when you have a third person indirect object.
Direct object is a difficult question (fem. sing.): la
Example 5: The students asked the teacher a difficult question, and she answered it to them.
Los estudiantes le hicieron una pregunta difícil a la profesora y ella __ la respondió.
The indirect object is the students: les.
But we cannot say: ella les la respondió, due to the cacophony of the combination, so the correct sentence is:
Example 5: The students asked the teacher a difficult question, and she answered it to them.
Los estudiantes le hicieron una pregunta difícil a la profesora y ella se la respondió.
See all the combinations possible in the following image:
Reminder
You need to pay close attention to the verb conjugations to know when se is an indirect object pronoun and when it is a reflexive pronoun. Let’s look at the following examples.
When Luis has dirty hands, he washes them.
Cuando Luis tienes las manos sucias se las lava.
The verb in this sentence is lavar, and the conjugation is in the present for él (Luis), so the se in this sentence is reflexive, and las refers to the direct object, the hands.
When Luis has dirty hands, you wash them for him.
Cuando Luis tiene las manos sucias se las lavas.
Lavas is the conjugation for tú in the present tense, so you are doing the action, and Luis is receiving it as an indirect object. The se in this sentence is indirect.
Guys, I know this can sometimes feel like a lot, but the best way to remember it is through constant practice. Don’t avoid using the pronouns because you don't feel confindent, on the contrary, if you don't feel confident, use them more. Being aware of their existence will inevitably help you resolve all doubts you have about them and thus learn to use them well. You can do it!
The summary of all direct and indirect object classes are in these couple of infographics that you can print and save:
Click here for exercises.
Click here for video class.
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