Need more clarity for the below question.

Question

Hi Guys,

For following sentence i need to find direct and indirect object " Stefaní da un reloj a mí"

Anyone can tell me which answer would be the correct among below two sentences.

Ans: 1 Stefaní me da un reloj a mí. Ans: 2 Stefaní me lo da un reloj a mí.

Regards, Mohammed from India

Answer 1

Hi Mohammed. First thing you need to do is identify the subject and the verb in that sentence.

• Stefaní da un reloj a mí = Stefaní gives a watch to me. Subject is Stefaní. Verb is da (verbo dar - to give)

Now you identify the direct object by asking what is the entity directly affected by the action of giving? the watch. As for the indirect object, when someone (or something) gets the direct object, that word is the indirect object, you are the indirect object - I mean you are, but since you are the speaker, that makes you I. So:

• un reloj = lo and a mí = me resulting: Stefaní me lo da (a mí). The last two words a mí could be omitted because they don't add any new information to the sentence but that's the way it is written many times.

When you use the direct pronoun lo, it replaces the word reloj so they cannnot be used at the same time. Me lo da un reloj can't be correct.

Think in English if you want:

1. Stefaní gives a watch to me. (to me = gives me)
2. Stefaní gives me a watch. (a watch = it)
3. Stefaní gives it to me.

Would you say: Stefaní gives it to me a watch?, it sounds weird to me. It could be for instance: Stefaní gives it to me, the watch. because of the presence of a comma, but this is not the case.

I hope this helped.

Clarity is preferable to dogma, which is what he was after--but you're not wrong. - jstackiv, Sep 26, 2013

Answer 2

Stefaní me lo da un reloj. You are the indirect object, the watch is the direct object.

But there are as many different ways to say things as there are souls.... - jstackiv, Sep 26, 2013

I have to disagree. "Stefaní me lo da un reloj" is not correct. - RelaxingCup, Sep 26, 2013