Personal A with he

Question

Who is he? He's my friend. I need to sharpen my pencil before I meet him.

¿Quién es? A él es mi amigo. Necesito sacarle punta a mi lápiz antes de encontrar a él

I'm pretty sure I have to include the personal a, but I could be wrong. I hope you guys don't mind telling me if you would include it. Also, is there a different way you would say to sharpen a pencil? Do I have to include "le"? Do I have to include it if I said "I need to sharpen a pencil"? Would sharpened pencil be "lápiz afilado"?

Antes de encontrarle o encontrarlo (a él) - 000a35ff, Oct 25, 2016

Antes de Encontrar a él is wrong then astotxua? - Ramonaspiker, Oct 26, 2016

Read bosque's post - 000a35ff, Oct 26, 2016

Answer 1

Él es mi amigo. Él is the subject; you need the personal a with direct objects, not subjects.

For multiple opinions about pencil sharpening, see here.

Thanks so much jtaniel! Looking at the opinions, all of them include le after sacar. Do you know why there is a "le"? - Ramonaspiker, Oct 25, 2016

Answer 2

Antes de Encontrar a él is wrong then astotxua?

Thanks so much jtaniel! Looking at the opinions, all of them include le after sacar. Do you know why there is a "le"?

Although I was not the one asked I will answer these:

Necesito sacarles punta a los lápices.

Necesito sacarle punta al lápiz

In Spanish it is normal to use a “redundant” indirect object pronoun for a named indirect object.

Le doy las galletas a mi padre- (to him) I give the cookies to my father. The le is technically redundant but normal.

If the indirect object precedes the verb, the redundant pronoun is required (same with a direct object), if it follows, it is merely normal with the indirect, and not normal with the direct.

Here you are (bringing/taking) out a point (on/for) a pencil.

Punta is the direct object. You don’t normally use a redundant pronoun.

Lápiz is the indirect object. In normal speech you will use a redundant pronoun.

Other question:

Antes de Encontrar a él- is it wrong. Very much so.

Here él is the direct object of encontrar, with a personal a.

If you have a named noun, as a direct object no object pronoun is required (and is not usual):

Antes de encontrar a Juan. Perfectly normal.

If you use a pronoun, you use a direct object pronoun, not one for the object of a preposition.

Antes de encontrarlo (or antes de encontrarla, for ella). Perfectly normal.

If you use leísmo, lo becomes le for the direct object (but la remains la).

Antes de encontrarle, Antes de encontrarla.

This would be primarily in certain parts of Spain.

I agree with bosque but I am disagree in a little point. When you are referring to a singular man le is not considered leismo. la forma le cuando el referente es un hombre, se admite, únicamente para el masculino singular, el uso de le en función de com - 000a35ff, Oct 26, 2016

Plemento directo . http://www.rae.es/consultas/uso-de-los-pronombres-los-las-les-leismo-laismo-loismo - 000a35ff, Oct 26, 2016