Lección de repaso - Los pronombres de objeto directo

Learning a new language can be a challenging and time-consuming process, but with the right tools and techniques, it is possible to achieve fluency and speak like a native. One powerful tool that can help language learners to make rapid progress is repetition.

Repetition

Repetition is the act of repeating something, whether it be a word, phrase, lesson, or concept in order to reinforce it in the mind. When it comes to language learning, repetition can be a highly effective way to improve pronunciation, build vocabulary, and increase fluency.

What to Expect?

In this course, we will provide lecciones de repaso – review lessons, which can be used as lessons for repetition. We will also provide tips and strategies for incorporating repetition into your Spanish language learning routine. By the end of this course, you will have a better understanding of the power of repetition when learning a second language.

Los pronombres de objeto directo - Direct object pronouns

Contrary to what you may think at first, direct object pronouns in Spanish are here to make your life easier.

Spanish direct object pronouns like me, te, lo, and la are an essential part of a Spanish speaker's vocabulary so it’s important that you fully grasp this concept.

What are Spanish Direct Object Pronouns?

Simply put, a direct object pronoun replaces a direct object, which is a noun. The noun in question could be a person, a thing, or a noun phrase that directly receives the action of the verb in a sentence.

By replacing this noun, you can avoid unnecessarily repeating a noun that you've already defined. It’s not just a Spanish thing though. You have direct object pronouns in English too. In fact, here is a quick example in English to give you an idea:

Marco is coming to visit. We are going to see him at the restaurant.
- Marco is the noun being replaced. By using "him" we avoid repeating "Marco" when it is clear who we are talking about.

If you are not exactly sure what this means right now, no worries! There will be lots of examples coming your way to make sense of all this pronoun jargon.

When you replace the direct object with a direct object pronoun you must make sure it agrees in number (singular, plural) and gender (feminine, masculine) with the noun being replaced.

Direct Object Pronouns

Here are the direct object pronouns that you need to master in this lesson. The Spanish pronoun is in bold, with the English meaning following.

**Direct Object Pronouns**
Person	Singular	Plural
1st Person	me - me	nos - us
2nd Person (informal)	te - you (informal)	os - you (plural, informal)
3rd Person / 2nd Person (formal)	lo, la - him, her, it, you (formal)	los, las - them, you (formal)

How to Say "It" in Spanish

Have you ever stopped to think about the consequence of a language only having two grammatical genders: masculine and feminine? There's no "neuter" or neutral gender, so how would you say "it" in such a language?

The answer comes from understanding how pronouns work in Spanish. Remember above when we said that the direct object pronoun must agree with the gender of the noun it replaces? Spanish only has two genders for their nouns, and so that means that lo and la will be used to replace any singular noun in the 3rd person. Lo refers to any masculine noun, while la refers to any feminine noun.

Well then, how do you know which gender to use if your pronoun is "it" in English? It will still be based on the original noun - remember, Spanish only uses masculine and feminine, so your noun will be either one or the other.

Example:

You took a photograph. I would like to see it.
- Would you use lo or la in Spanish?
- Answer: it depends on the gender of photograph, which is la fotografía. That's feminine, so we would use la to express the direct object pronoun in this example.

Using Direct Object Pronouns

Remember, direct object pronouns exist in both English and Spanish! Let's take a look at how the two behave differently.

The main difference between the use of direct object pronouns in Spanish and in English is their placement. While in English they are placed after the verb, in Spanish this pronoun is placed in front of the verb.

Let’s take a look at some helpful examples. Remember the direct object (noun) can be a person, a thing, or a noun phrase.

Juan toma una fotografía. Juan la toma.
- Juan takes a picture. Juan takes it.
  - una fotografía receives the action of the verb takes.
  - una fotografía = feminine, singular = la.
Peter lleva las zapatillas para jugar al tenis. Pepe las lleva.
- Pepe wears tennis shoes to play tennis. Pepe wears them.
  - las zapatillas receives the action of the verb llevar.
  - las zapatillas = feminine, plural = las.
Clara come tomates. Clara los come.
- Clara eats tomatoes. Clara eats them.
  - Tomates receives the action of the verb comer.
  - tomates = masculine, plural = los.

Video Lesson

This video lesson will help you understand how to replace a noun with a direct object pronoun in a sentence.

This is a muy importante lección (very important lesson) You may want to watch it twice! You will need tu cuaderno (your notebook), tu lápiz or bolígrafo (your pencil or your pen) Necesitas tomar apuntes (take notes) and complete practice activities.

Remember, email your teacher if you have any questions after you complete a lesson. Your instructor is always available to help you and clarify any additional questions you may have before you move forward with your studies.

Video credit: Lingo Learner (YouTube)

Practice Activity

Was this video lesson helpful? If you need a pencil, can you say in Spanish I need it? Do you understand how to use direct object pronouns in a sentence? If your answer was sí to all questions, then you are ready to complete the following practice activities.

Take time to practice. All practice activities have unlimited attempts. Practice as many times as you need. When you complete practice activities, you are reviewing the lessons and preparing yourself to move forward in the course!

Note: You are required to use information from this course to complete all practice activities. Additionally, fill-in-the-blank activities can be very particular: if an item is marked incorrect, double check that it wasn't something as minor as an extra space or a capital letter in the wrong place!

Example:

Select the correct direct object pronoun to replace the noun: María lee el libro. María ____ lee.

el libro (masculine, singular) would be replaced by lo. María lo lee.

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