2.4 Direct and indirect objects, reflexive verbs, and body parts Flashcards
What is a direct object?
A
A direct object (D.O.) is something or someone that certain verbs (transitive verbs) act upon:
* I read a book. Q: What did I read? DO: a book
* I drove a car. Q: What did I drive? DO: a car
* I will call Ana. Q: Who will I call? DO: Ana
What is a tonic or disjunctive pronoun?
A
A tonic or disjunctive pronoun is a stressed form of a personal pronoun that is only used in certain contexts. In Spanish, they are:
* a mí
* a ti
* a él/ella/ud
* a nosotros
* a vosotros
* a ellos/ellas/uds
Marcos helps me
A
Marcos me ayuda
me - me. Note that we can use the direct-object pronoun me to replace the disjunctive pronoun a mí. Direct object pronouns always appear before the conjugated verb
Guillermo calls you every day
A
Guillermo te llama todos los días
you - te. Note that this direct-object pronoun replaces the disjunctive pronoun a ti (i.e. Guillermo te llama a ti)
I don’t see him at the back of the restaurant
A
No lo veo al fondo del restaurante
him, it, you (Ud) - lo. Note that this direct-object pronoun replaces masculine nouns such as:
the phrases a él and a usted
a masculine noun (e.g. el libro)
someone’s name (e.g. a Marcos)
I didn’t receive the letter. I didn’t receive it
A
No recibí la carta. No la recibí
her, it, you (formal, feminine) - la. Note that this direct-object pronoun replaces feminine nouns such as:
the phrases a ella and a usted
a feminine noun (e.g. la carta), or
a person (e.g. María)
They helped us buy a house
A
Ellos nos ayudaron a comprar una casa
us - nos. Note that this direct-object pronoun replaces the disjunctive pronoun a nosotros(as). Also note that the direct-object pronoun is placed between the subject and the verb
I sold the books. I sold them
A
Vendí los libros. Los vendí
them, you (plural) - los. Note that this direct-object pronoun replaces the disjunctive pronouns a ellos and a ustedes, or replaces a plural masculine noun (e.g. los libros), or replaces several names (e.g. Marcos y María)
I helped them (fem)
A
Yo las ayudé
them (fem), you (plural, fem) - las. Note that this direct-object pronoun replaces the phrases a ellas and a ustedes, or replaces a plural feminine noun (e.g. las casas), or replaces several feminine names (e.g. María y Carla)
We met them (fem) at the party
A
Nosotros las conocimos en la fiesta
party - la fiesta. Note that the direct-object pronoun (e.g. las) usually goes between the subject and the verb
We are going to see him soon
A
Vamos a verlo pronto
Note that when a full verb phrase is used, the direct-object pronoun may be attached at the end of the infinitive. It is also acceptable to say Nosotros lo vamos a ver
We saw him at the movie theater
A
Lo vimos en el cine
movie theater - el cine
Pancho does not have very good sight, therefore he doesn’t see me
A
Pancho no tiene muy buena vista, por eso no me ve
sight - la vista. Note that when using a negation, the direct-object pronoun goes in between no and the verb (e.g. no me ve)
Translate to Spanish.
Direct-Object Pronouns
* me
* you
* him/her
* us
* you
* them
A
Pronombres de Objeto Directo
* me (yo)
* te (tú)
* lo, la (él/ella/ud)
* nos (nosotros)
* os (vosotros)
* los, las (ellos/ellas/uds)
What is an indirect object?
A
An indirect object (I.O.) is a noun or pronoun for which the verb’s actions are intended and answers the questions “to whom” and “for whom”:
* I make Jaime lunch. IO: for Jaime DO: lunch
* I sent Marta a letter. IO: to Marta DO: a letter
Translate to Spanish.
Indirect-Object Pronouns
* to me
* to you
* to him/her
* to us
* to you
* to them
A
Pronombres de Objeto Indirecto
* me (yo)
* te (tú)
* le (él/ella/ud)
* nos (nosotros)
* os (vosotros)
* les (ellos/ellas/uds)
*
- Translate to Spanish.
- He bought me these books.
- He bought me them.
- A
- Él me compró estos libros.
- Él me los compró.
- to me - me. Note that the indirect-object pronoun goes before the direct-object pronoun
- Translate to Spanish.
- Rosa bought you these apples.
- She bought you them
A
* Rosa te compró estas manzanas.
* Te las compró
* to you - te
Translate to Spanish.
We bought these chairs for Rafael.
We bought these chairs for him.
We bought them for him
A
Nosotros compramos estas sillas para Rafael.
Nosotros le compramos estas sillas.
Nosotros se las compramos
to him, to her, to you (ud) - le. Note that when the indirect object pronoun le is followed by the direct-object pronouns lo, la, los or las, you must change le to se
Translate to Spanish.
I did not buy this desk for my son.
I did not buy him this desk.
I did not buy it for him
A
No compré este escritorio para mi hijo.
No le compré este escritorio.
No se lo compré
desk - el escritorio
Translate to Spanish.
They did not send us the letters.
They never sent them to us
A
Ellos no nos enviaron las cartas.
Nunca nos las enviaron
to us – nos
I didn’t buy these pens for Marcos and Pamela
I didn’t buy these pens for them
I didn’t buy them for them
A
No compré estas plumas para Marcos y Pamela
No les compré estas plumas
No se las compré
to them, to you (plural) – les
They sent you (vosotros) a letter.
They sent it to you (vosotros)
A
Ellos os enviaron una carta.
Os la enviaron
to you (vosotros) - os
A
Ellos os enviaron una carta.
Os la enviaron
to you (vosotros) - os
TO GIVE (Preterite)
* I gave
* You gave
* He/She gave
* We gave
* You gave
* They gave
A
DAR (Tiempo Pretérito)
* Yo di
* Tú diste
* Él/Ella/Ud dio
* Nosotros dimos
* Vosotros disteis
* Ellos/Ellas/Uds dieron
Remember that the conjugations for dar in the preterite tense are irregular
I gave the book to Miguel
A
Le di el libro a Miguel
Note that we repeat the indirect object pronoun le despite the fact that we still say a Miguel. The indirect object pronoun is always used whether or not the actual object is stated
I bought the book from Miguel
A
Le compré el libro a Miguel
Note that the word comprar, as well as a few similar words (e.g. robar, quitar), often uses the preposition a to denote the person from whom the item is being purchased, rather than using de. Confusingly, this sentence could also mean that you are buying the book “for” Miguel, depending on context.
The sad part is that he never knew his grandfather
A
Lo triste es que nunca conoció a su abuelo
Note that the word lo is used as a neuter article to indicate “the ___ part.” Another common example is lo bueno (“the good part”)
He doesn’t understand how handsome he is
A
Él no entiende lo guapo que es
how (to express degree) - lo. Note that the use of the neuter lo here has nothing to do with gender. You would also say Ella no entiende lo guapa que es.
The part about eating made me hungry
A
Lo de comer me dio hambre
the part about - lo de. Note that the phrase lo de is used to denote “the part about”, or “all this business about”
She tells me she is American, but I don’t believe her
A
Me dice que es americana, pero no le creo
to tell - decir. Note that the word decir means “to say” when there is no indirect object (such as me), but “to tell” when there is an indirect object
TO SAY/TELL (Preterite)
* I said
* You said
* He/She said
* We said
* You said
* They said
A
DECIR (Tiempo Pretérito)
* Yo dije
* Tú dijiste
* Él/Ella/Ud dijo
* Nosotros dijimos
* Vosotros dijisteis
* Ellos/Ellas/Uds dijeron
Did they tell you where the bathroom is?
A
¿Te dijeron dónde está el baño?
they said/told - dijeron. Note that decir is irregular in the preterite tense
I don’t care if you come or not
A
(A mí) no me importa si vienes o no
I care - me importa. (Literally “It is important to me.”) Note that this verb works similarly to verbs like gustar, because the object of “care” in English becomes the subject of the Spanish importar
Apparently, she doesn´t care
A
Por lo visto, (a ella) no le importa
apparently - por lo visto. Literally, por lo visto translates to “by that which is seen”
What is a reflexive verb in Spanish?
A
Verbs that reflect back to the subject doing the action. Although these verbs can often be used in a non-reflexive context, they are most generally used to show that the noun is acting on itself and are very commonly used among Spanish-speakers
What are the reflexive pronouns in Spanish?
A
Pronombres Reflexivos
* me (yo)= myself
* te (tú)= yourself
* se (él/ella/ud)= himself, herself, yourself
* nos (nosotros)= ourselves
* os (vosotros)= yourselves
* se (ellos/ellas/uds)= themselves, yourselves
I shave my grandfather
A
Yo afeito a mi abuelo
to shave - afeitar
I help my grandfather shave himself
A
Yo le ayudo a mi abuelo a afeitarse
to shave oneself - afeitarse. Note that since my grandfather is both the shaver and the recipient of the shaving, we use the reflexive pronoun se
My aunt bathes her baby
A
Mi tía baña a su bébé
to bathe - bañar
We bathe (ourselves) every day
A
Nosotros nos bañamos todos los días
to bathe oneself - bañarse. Note that this sentence construction is actually indistinguishable from “we bathe each other”. We can usually know which connotation is meant by context!
I am going to approach the handsome man
A
Voy a acercarme al hombre guapo
to approach - acercarse a
I could never get used to the cold
A
Nunca pude acostumbrarme al frío
to get used to - acostumbrarse a
Her baby looks so much like her
A
Su bébé se parece tanto a ella
to look like - parecer(se) a
I fell asleep at 8:00
A
Me dormí a las 8:00
to fall asleep - dormirse. Note that “to fall asleep” is dormirse, while “to sleep” is simply dormir
Paulo and Luisa went to bed at eight forty-five
A
Paulo y Luisa se acostaron a las nueve menos cuarto
to lie down, to go to bed - acostarse
No, my grandpa doesn’t have hair anymore
A
No, mi abuelo ya no tiene cabello
hair - el cabello, el pelo. Note that the use of cabello or pelo depends on the region
Before eating, we have to buy food and cook it
A
Antes de comer, tenemos que comprar la comida y cocinarla
before - antes (de)
What is the difference between the words sé and se?
A
* sé is the conjugation of saber in the first person singular (yo sé = “I know”)
- se is the reflexive pronoun for the third person singular (él, ella, ud) or plural (ellos/ellas/uds)
What is the difference between the words té and te?
A
* té means “tea”
* te is the reflexive pronoun for the second person singular (tú)
