Introduction
When one verb has both an indirect and a direct object pronoun, the indirect one comes first. Le and les turn into se before lo, la, los and las.
indirect+direct+verb
le / les+lo / la / los / las se lo / la / los / las
- Te lo doy.I'm giving it to you.
- Me la compró.He bought it for me.
- Se lo di.I gave it to him / her / them.
- Nos los mandaron.They sent them to us.
- Le lo di.Se lo di.
- Lo le di.Se lo di.
Se can mean to him, to her, to you or to them. Add a él, a ella, a usted or a ellos to make it clear: Se lo di a ella.
Position
The pair stays together. It goes before a conjugated verb or a negative command, and attaches to an infinitive, a gerund or an affirmative command.
- Te lo quiero dar. / Quiero dártelo.I want to give it to you.
- Se la estoy escribiendo. / Estoy escribiéndosela.I'm writing it to her.
- Dímelo.Tell me.
- Explícaselo.Explain it to him.
- No me lo digas.Don't tell me.
Attaching two pronouns usually needs a written accent to keep the original stress: dar dártelo, di dímelo.
Practice
¿El regalo? ___ di ayer. (to her)
Which comes first?
Le + lo becomes ___.
¿La carta? ___ mandé. (to you, tú)
¿Los libros? Mi padre ___ compró. (for me)
Quiero ___. (give it to you)
¡___! (Tell it to me!)
No ___ digas. (Don't tell it to me.)
Se lo di ___. (to her)
1 of 9