Spanish object pronouns lo, la, le and se lo, and where they go
Object pronouns replace a noun you have already mentioned, so you can say “I bought it” instead of repeating “I bought the ticket”. Spanish has one set for direct objects and one for indirect objects, and they differ only in the third person. Below: how to choose between them, how to combine two, and where they go in the sentence.
When to use each set
Use a direct object pronoun for the thing or person the verb acts on directly. In Compré el billete, the ticket is what I bought, so it becomes Lo compré, “I bought it”.
Use an indirect object pronoun for the person who receives something or is affected by the action. In Escribí una carta a mi madre, my mother receives the letter, so she becomes le: Le escribí una carta, “I wrote her a letter”.
For the third person, a quick test is useful. If you could say “to him”, “to her” or “to them” in English, you need le or les. If the person or thing follows the verb with nothing in between, you need lo, la, los or las.
| Person | Direct object | Indirect object | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| yo | me | me | me, to me |
| tú, vos | te | te | you, to you |
| él, usted (m) | lo | le | him, it, you / to him, to you |
| ella, usted (f) | la | le | her, it, you / to her, to you |
| nosotros, nosotras | nos | nos | us, to us |
| vosotros, vosotras | os | os | you, to you (Spain) |
| ellos, ustedes (m) | los | les | them, you / to them, to you |
| ellas, ustedes (f) | las | les | them, you / to them, to you |
Only lo, la, los and las show gender. Le and les are the same for men, women and things.
Direct object pronouns
Lo, la, los and las agree with the noun they replace. Use lo for a masculine noun and la for a feminine one.
¿Tienes el pasaporte? Sí, lo tengo. Do you have the passport? Yes, I have it.
¿Dónde está la llave? No la encuentro. Where’s the key? I can’t find it.
Compré las entradas ayer. Las tengo aquí. I bought the tickets yesterday. I’ve got them here.
When the direct object is a specific person, put the personal a before the noun: Veo a María. With the pronoun there is no a: La veo.
Lo also stands for a whole idea. No lo sé is “I don’t know”, literally “I don’t know it”. Ya lo sé is “I know”. ¿Lo sabías? is “Did you know?”
Indirect object pronouns
Le and les often appear alongside the noun they refer to. Le di el libro a Juan is normal Spanish, and in speech the le is almost always there even though a Juan is also in the sentence. This doubling is standard and learners who leave the le out sound slightly off.
Verbs you often use with an indirect object include dar (give), decir (say, tell), enviar and mandar (send), escribir (write), preguntar (ask), pedir (ask for), explicar (explain), enseñar (show, teach) and prestar (lend).
Gustar, encantar, interesar, doler and importar also use the indirect set. Le gusta el café is “He likes coffee”, literally “Coffee pleases him”. See how gustar works for the full pattern.
Two pronouns together
When a sentence has both, the indirect pronoun comes first and the direct second.
Me lo dio. He gave it to me.
Te la mando mañana. I’ll send it to you tomorrow.
Nos los enseñaron. They showed them to us.
When le or les would come before lo, la, los or las, it changes to se. Nobody says le lo in Spanish.
| Instead of | Say | English |
|---|---|---|
| le lo di | se lo di | I gave it to him, to her, to you |
| les la mandé | se la mandé | I sent it to them |
| le los expliqué | se los expliqué | I explained them to him, to her |
Because se can mean him, her, you or them, add a él, a ella, a usted or a ellos when it is not clear from the context: Se lo di a ella, “I gave it to her”.
Where the pronouns go
With one conjugated verb, the pronouns go before it: Lo compré. In a negative sentence, no comes before the pronouns: No lo compré.
With an infinitive or gerund, put the pronouns before the conjugated verb, or attach them to the infinitive or gerund. Both are correct.
| Before | Attached | English |
|---|---|---|
| Lo voy a comprar. | Voy a comprarlo. | I’m going to buy it. |
| Te lo quiero decir. | Quiero decírtelo. | I want to tell you (it). |
| La estoy leyendo. | Estoy leyéndola. | I’m reading it. |
| Se lo tengo que dar. | Tengo que dárselo. | I have to give it to him. |
Keep the pronouns together. In te quiero decirlo they are split, and that is wrong.
With an affirmative command, attach them. With a negative command, put them before the verb.
| Affirmative | Negative | English |
|---|---|---|
| Dímelo. | No me lo digas. | Tell me. / Don’t tell me. |
| Cómpralo. | No lo compres. | Buy it. / Don’t buy it. |
| Dáselo. | No se lo des. | Give it to him. / Don’t give it to him. |
With the present perfect and other compound tenses, the pronouns go before haber: Lo he visto, “I have seen it”. They never attach to the participle.
Written accents when you attach
When you attach a pronoun, the word has one more syllable, so you may need a written accent to keep the stress. Comprando becomes comprándolo. Da becomes dámelo. Decir stays decirlo with one pronoun but becomes decírselo with two. The rules are on the accent marks page.
Worked examples
- ¿El café? Lo tomo sin azúcar. The coffee? I take it without sugar.
- No la conozco. I don’t know her.
- Te llamo esta noche. I’ll call you tonight.
- ¿Me ayudas? Will you help me?
- Le compré flores a mi abuela. I bought my grandmother flowers.
- Les escribo mañana. I’ll write to them tomorrow.
- ¿La cuenta? Ya la pagué. The bill? I’ve already paid it.
- Me lo explicó dos veces. She explained it to me twice.
- ¿Le diste las llaves a Pedro? Sí, se las di. Did you give Pedro the keys? Yes, I gave them to him.
- Voy a preguntárselo a la profesora. I’m going to ask the teacher.
- No se lo digas a nadie. Don’t tell anyone.
- Esa película ya la he visto. That film I’ve already seen.
In example 12 the object comes first, so it is repeated with la. When you move a direct object to the front of the sentence, the pronoun is required.
Common mistakes English speakers make
| Wrong | Right | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Le lo di. | Se lo di. | Le becomes se before lo. |
| Lo me dio. | Me lo dio. | Indirect before direct. |
| Voy a lo comprar. | Lo voy a comprar. or Voy a comprarlo. | Before the conjugated verb or attached, not between. |
| Dame lo. | Dámelo. | Attach to affirmative commands, with an accent. |
| No dímelo. | No me lo digas. | Use the subjunctive for a negative command, with the pronouns before it. |
| He lo visto. | Lo he visto. | Pronouns go before haber. |
| Las he vistas. | Las he visto. | The participle after haber does not agree. |
| Di el libro a Juan. | Le di el libro a Juan. | Grammatical, but natural speech doubles with le. |
| La dije la verdad. | Le dije la verdad. | The person you tell is an indirect object: you tell the truth to her. |
Regional notes
Leísmo in Spain. In much of Spain, people use le instead of lo for a male person as a direct object: Le vi ayer for “I saw him yesterday”. The Real Academia Española accepts this for a singular male person. In Mexico, Colombia and Argentina you say Lo vi ayer. For things, use lo: El coche lo vi ayer.
Usted. In Latin America the direct object for usted follows gender: Lo espero, señor and La espero, señora. In Spain you will often hear Le espero for both.
Laísmo. In parts of central Spain, including Madrid, some speakers say la for an indirect object: La dije que viniera. The Academia treats this as incorrect, so use le: Le dije que viniera.
Se los dije. In Latin America, when se stands for “to them”, speakers often move the plural onto the direct pronoun: Se los dije for “I told them (it)”. In Spain people say Se lo dije. You will hear the Latin American form constantly in Mexico, Colombia and Argentina, though it is avoided in careful writing.
Vosotros. In Spain people use os for “you all”: Os lo explico. In Latin America people use los, las or les for ustedes: Se lo explico a ustedes, Los espero.
Practise it
The Vozelu grammar course has three lessons on this: “Direct object pronouns”, “Indirect object pronouns” and “Where pronouns go”. To take them, create an account. In each lesson you read the forms, then you type the pronouns into full sentences and are told what you got wrong, including the order of two pronouns and where they attach.
Questions people ask
How do I know if I need lo or le? Ask whether the English has “to” or “for” in front of the person. “I called him” is lo llamé in Latin America. “I wrote to him” is le escribí. With decir, dar and preguntar, use le for the person.
Why does le change to se? Le lo and les lo are never used. When the two pronouns come together, le and les become se. The meaning does not change, only the form.
Can the pronoun go after the verb? Only on an infinitive, a gerund or an affirmative command. With a conjugated verb such as compro or compré it always goes before.
Is “le vi” wrong? In Spain it is standard for a male person. In Latin America it sounds like Spain, and learners there should say lo vi.
Why is there a le in “le di el libro a Juan” if Juan is already named? Spanish speakers routinely double the indirect object with a pronoun. Leaving it out is grammatical but less natural.
What does “lo” mean in “no lo sé”? It stands for the fact or idea you are talking about. In English you leave it out, as in “I don’t know”. In Spanish you usually include it.
Do I need an accent on dímelo? Yes. Di has one syllable and the stress stays on it when two pronouns are added, so dímelo has the accent to show the stress on dí.