BCCC Tutoring Center Rev. 7/2015
Spanish
Isabel ama a Oscar. Isabel lo ama.
Isabel loves Oscar. Isabel loves him.
Oscar
is the direct object of the sentence. He answers the question “Who?” “Who does
Isabel love?”
Oscar
is a masculine singular noun (he is a boy, and there is only one of
him), and therefore, is replaced by the masculine singular direct object pronoun
la.
Profesor Martinez: ¿Me puede oír? Estudiante: No, no lo oigo bien.
Professor Martinez: Can you hear me?
Student: No I can’t hear you well.
Professor Martinez
is speaking to a student. When the student responds,
Professor
Martinez
is the direct object of the sentence. This is a formal situation, and therefore,
the student responds with the
you formal
(m.)
form of the direct object
lo.
o The direct object
la
corresponds to a feminine singular direct object of a sentence.
La
can mean
it (f.)
,
her
or
you formal (f.)
in English
.
Margarita come la tortilla. Margarita la come.
Margarita eats the tortilla. Margarita eats it.
La tortilla
is the direct object of the sentence. It answers the question “What?”
“What does Margarita eat?”
The tortilla
is a feminine singular noun, and
therefore, is replaced by the feminine singular direct object pronoun
la.
Miguel ve a Luisa. Miguel la ve.
Miguel sees Luisa. Miguel sees her.
Luisa
is the direct object of the sentence. She answers the question “Who?”
“Who does Miguel see?”
Luisa
is a feminine singular noun (she is a girl, and there
is only one of her), and therefore, is replaced by the feminine singular direct
object pronoun
la.
Doctora Ortega: ¿Me puede ver? Paciente: Sí, la veo.
Doctor Ortega: Can you see me?
Patient: Yes, I see you.
Doctora Ortega
is speaking to a patient. When the patient responds,
Doctora
Ortega
is the direct object of the sentence. This is a formal situation, and
therefore, the patient responds with the
you formal
(f.)
form of the direct object
la.
o The direct object
los
corresponds to a masculine plural direct object of a sentence.
Maria tiene los bolígrafos. Maria los tiene.
Maria has the pens. Maria has them.
Los bolígrafos
is the direct object of the sentence. It answers the question
“What?” “What does Maria have?”
The pens
are masculine plural, and
therefore, are replaced by the masculine plural direct object pronoun
los.