Italian grammar · Elementary (A2)
Object pronouns: lo, la, li, le, gli…
Direct object pronouns (lo, la, li, le) and indirect ones (gli, le, Le): their forms, where they go and how they work in the past.
Direct object pronouns: it, him, her, them
A direct object is the person or thing that receives the action: in “I see Marco”, Marco is the object. A pronoun can replace it: → (I see him). Choose the pronoun by gender and number: for masculine, for feminine, for masculine or mixed plural, for feminine plural.
The same words mean “it” and “them” for things: The polite “you” is , with a capital letter in writing: (Thank you, literally “I thank you”).
| Person | Direct | Example |
|---|---|---|
| me | (Can you hear me?) | |
| you (tu) | (I'll call you tonight.) | |
| him, it | (I know him.) | |
| her, it | (I'll buy it.) | |
| you (Lei) | (Can I help you?) | |
| us | (Can you see us?) | |
| you (voi) | (I'll wait for you.) | |
| them | / | (I'll try them on. I'll take them.) |
Indirect object pronouns: to him, to her
An indirect object is the person you give, say, send or phone “to”: → (I'll phone him). Only three forms differ from the direct ones: (to him, and in everyday Italian also to them; formal writing may use after the verb instead), (to her) and (to you, polite).
You already know these pronouns from : (it pleases me), Verbs that often take them are , , , , , (to ask) and (to answer).
| Person | Indirect | Example |
|---|---|---|
| to me | (Will you give me the number?) | |
| to you (tu) | (I'll write to you tomorrow.) | |
| to him | (I'll tell him to call.) | |
| to her | (I'll send her a photo.) | |
| to you (Lei) | (I'll phone you tomorrow.) | |
| to us | (She often writes to us.) | |
| to you (voi) | (I'll send you the address.) | |
| to them | (I'll answer them straight away.) |
Where they go
Object pronouns normally go before the verb, and goes before them: . With , and + infinitive, the pronoun can go before the first verb or join the end of the infinitive, which drops its -e: =
They also join the end of () and of the , and imperatives (, ). With the polite imperative, they go before: , .
- Il libro? Non lo trovo.The book? I can't find it.
- Devo chiamarlo stasera.I have to call him tonight.
- Le chiavi? Eccole.The keys? Here they are.
In the passato prossimo
Before a form of (), and usually become ; and never do. When a direct pronoun comes before , the participle agrees with it:
Indirect pronouns don't change the participle: (I phoned her), (We wrote to him).
- Hai visto Giulia? – Sì, l'ho vista stamattina.Have you seen Giulia? – Yes, I saw her this morning.
- Le scarpe? Le ho provate, ma sono piccole.The shoes? I tried them on, but they're small.
- Hai chiamato Marco? – Sì, gli ho telefonato ieri.Did you call Marco? – Yes, I phoned him yesterday.
Combined pronouns: me lo, glielo
When an indirect and a direct pronoun go together, the indirect one comes first and become : (Will you give it to me?). , and all become glie-, written as one word with the next pronoun: , and with .
They go in the same places as single pronouns: , , , and before a imperative: . In the passato prossimo, the participle agrees with :
| Indirect | + | + | + | + |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| / / | ||||