Gramática (8)
Ejemplos--capítulo ocho
I. Use of verbs -- hacer, poner, vivir and salir
ex.
yo hago
nosotros/as hacemos
tú haces
vosotros/as hacéis
Ud. hace
ustedes hacen
él hace
ellos/ellas hacen
ella hace
1. ¿Pones los libros en tu mochila? Sí, pongo los libros en mi mochila.
2. ¿Haces la cama y lavas los platos? Sí, hago la cama y
lavo los platos.
3. ¿Sale Juan de la casa a las seis por la noche? No, Juan
sale de la casa a las ocho por la noche.
4. ¿Viven Paco y Sara cerca de la tienda? Sara y Paco no
viven cerca de la tienda.
II. Los adjetivos posesivos
mi libro (my
book)
mis libros (my books)
tu libro (your
book)
tus libros (your books)
su libro (his/her/their
book)
sus libros (his/her/their books)
nuestro(a) libro (our
book)
nuestros (as) libros (our books)
*vuestro (a) libro (your (pl.) book) vuestros (as) libros (your (pl)
books)
*This is the vosotros form.
ej. La casa grande es mi casa. Tu casa es verde. Juan
tiene una casa azul. Su casa es grande también.
III Tener que --to have to
Just conjugate "tener" to the appropriate form and add a verb to
the end of the expression to state what you HAVE to do.
ej. Tengo que lavar la ropa. Tienes que hacer la cama.
Rosita tiene que cortar el césped. Ellos tienen que poner la
mesa. Pablo y yo tenemos que estudiar.
IV Cerca de and lejos de
ej. Mi casa está cerca del hospital. La casa de Juan está cerca de
la tienda, pero está lejos del hospital. Tu casa está lejos de la
escuela.
Indirect Object Pronouns: Part I
The indirect object (IO) tells us where the direct object (DO) is going.
He gives the book to María.
DO=Book
Where is the book going? To María. IO=María
He gives María the book. DO=Book Where is the book going? To
María. IO=María
The indirect object answers the question "To whom?" or "For whom?" the action of the verb is performed.
He gives María the book.
To whom does he give
the book?
To María. IO=María
He buys me flowers. For whom does he buy the flowers?
For me. IO=me
In order for a sentence to have an indirect object, it must have a direct object. Remember, the IO tells us where the DO is going. Notice how the sentences below just wouldn't work without a direct object.
He gives María . . .
the book, the pen, the diamond, etc.
He buys me . . .
flowers, candy, an ironing board, etc.
Sometimes the direct object is not stated; rather it is implied, or understood.
My mother writes me every week.
DO=letter (understood) IO=me (My mother writes me
a letter every week.)
She told him. DO=it (understood) IO=him (She told it to
him.)
To identify the indirect object use our two guidelines:
1. The IO tells us where the DO is going.
2. The IO answers the question "to whom?" or "for whom" the action of the verb is performed.
Indirect Object Pronouns
me (me)
te (you-familiar)
le (him, her, you-formal)
nos (us)
os (you-all-familiar)
les (them, you-all-formal)
In an affirmative statement with one verb, the indirect object pronoun comes immediately before the conjugated verb.
Juan me compra un
regalo.
John buys me a gift. John buys a gift for me.
Juan te compra un regalo. John buys you a gift. John buys a
gift for you.
Juan le compra un regalo. John buys her a gift. John buys a
gift for her.
Juan nos compra un regalo. John buys us a gift. John buys a
gift for us.
Juan os compra un regalo. John buys you-all (familiar) a
gift. John buys a gift for you-all.
Juan les compra un regalo. John buys them a gift. John buys
a gift for them.
Just like with the direct object, the indirect object presents a problem if one tries to translate word-for-word:
Juan me compra un regalo.
John for me he buys a gift.
The key to learning to use the indirect object pronouns is the same as the key for direct object pronouns. You must learn to think in phrases, not words. The phrases consist of a pronoun and a conjugated verb. In the following examples, note that the IO remains the same, while the subject of the phrase changes.
me compra
he buys me
me compran
they buy me
me compras
you buy me
The IO pronouns le and les present a special problem because they are ambiguous. That is, they can stand for different things.
le
to (for) him
to (for) her
to (for) you-formal
les
to (for) them
to (for) you-all-formal
The following sentences, while grammatically correct, are ambiguous:
Ella le escribe una carta. Ella les escribe una carta.
Out of context, there is no way we can know the meaning.
Ella le escribe una carta.
She writes him a letter. She writes her a letter.
She writes you (formal) a letter.
Ella les escribe una carta. She writes them a letter. She
writes you-all (formal) a letter.
Since le and les can mean more than one thing, a prepositional phrase is often added to remove the ambiguity.
Ella le escribe a Juan una carta.
Ella le escribe a su hermana una carta.
Ella le escribe a usted una carta.
Ella les escribe a sus padres una carta.
Ella les escribe a ustedes una carta.
Sometimes a prepositional phrase is added not for clarity, but rather for emphasis.
Juan me da a mí el dinero.
John gives me the money.
(emphasizing that the money is given to me and not to someone else)
Juan te da a ti el dinero.
John gives you the money. (emphasis on you)
There is no ambiguity in the following sentence. It can only mean one thing.
Juan me da el dinero.
John gives me the money.
The addition of a prepositional phrase merely adds emphasis.
Juan me da a mí el dinero.
John gives me the money.
Let's sum up the important points of this lesson:
· The IO tells us where the DO is going.
· The IO answers the question "to whom" or "for whom."
· In order for a sentence to have a IO, it must also have a DO.
· Sometimes the DO is not stated, but rather is implied, or understood.
· The IO pronouns are: me, te, le, nos, os, les.
· Place the pronoun before the conjugated verb.
· Think in phrases, do not translate word-for-word.
· Le and les are ambiguous.
· Prepositional phrases are often used for clarity and for emphasis.
Direct and Indirect Object Pronouns Used Together
Here are the direct object pronouns and the indirect object pronouns side by side:
| DO Pronouns | IO Pronouns | English Equivalent |
| me | me | me |
| te | te | you (familiar) |
| lo, la | le | him, her, it, you (formal) |
| nos | nos | us |
| os | os | you-all (familiar) |
| los, las | les | them, you-all (formal) |
When you have both a direct object pronoun and an indirect object pronoun in the same sentence, the indirect object pronoun comes first.
Ellos me los dan.
They give them to me.
IO pronoun: me
DO pronoun: los
Ella te la vende.
She sells it to you.
IO pronoun: te
DO pronoun: la
Whenever both pronouns begin with the letter "l" change the first pronoun to "se."
le lo = se lo
le la = se la
le los = se los
le las = se las
les lo = se lo
les la = se la
les los = se los
les las = se las
The reason for changing "le lo" to "se lo" is merely to avoid the tongue-twisting effect of two short consecutive words that begin with the letter "l". To demonstrate this, first quickly say "les las" and then quickly say "se las." See how much easier it is to say "se las?"
In negative sentences, the negative word comes directly before the first pronoun.
No se lo tengo.
I don't have it for you.
Nunca se los compro.
I never buy them for her.
Because the pronoun se can have so many meanings, it is often helpful to clarify it by using a prepositional phrase.
Él se lo dice.
Ambiguous. He tells it to (whom?).
Él se lo dice a Juan.
He tells it to him. (to Juan)
Él se lo dice a María.
He tells it to her. (to María)
Él se lo dice a ella.
He tells it to her.
In sentences with two verbs, there are two options regarding the placement of the pronouns. Place them immediately before the conjugated verb or attach them directly to the infinitive.
She should explain it to me.
Ella me lo debe explicar.
Ella debe explicármelo.
I want to tell it to you.
Te lo quiero decir.
Quiero decírtelo.
You need to send it to them.
Se la necesitas enviar a ellos.
Necesitas enviársela a ellos.
Note that when attaching the pronouns to the infinitive, a written accent is also added to the final syllable of the infinitive. This preserves the sound of the infinitive.
When the pronouns are attached to the infinitive, make the sentence negative by placing the negative word directly before the conjugated verb.
Ella debe explicármelo.
Ella no debe explicármelo.
Quiero decírtelo.
No quiero decírtelo.
Necesitas enviársela a ellos.
No necesitas enviársela a ellos.
When the pronouns come before the conjugated verb, make the sentence negative by placing the negative word directly before the pronouns.
Ella me lo debe explicar.
Ella no me lo debe explicar.
Te lo quiero decir.
No te lo quiero decir.
Se la necesitas enviar a ellos.
No se la necesitas enviar a ellos.
