I pronomi diretti: lo, la, li, le, mi, ti, ci, vi
I pronomi diretti: lo, la, li, le, mi, ti, ci, vi means “They replace a direct object and normally go before the verb”. The forms are mi, ti, lo (m. Formation: pron. + verbo — con infinito/imperativo si attacca: vederlo, guardami — con passato prossimo il participio concorda: li ho visti
They replace a direct object and normally go before the verb
A2Formation
pron. + verbo — con infinito/imperativo si attacca: vederlo, guardami — con passato prossimo il participio concorda: li ho visti
Explanation
The forms are mi, ti, lo (m. sg.), la (f. sg.), ci, vi, li (m. pl.), le (f. pl.). They answer 'whom?' or 'what?' with no preposition, and they go before the conjugated verb: lo vedo, la conosco, li compro. Lo and la elide before a vowel or h: l'ho visto, l'aspetto. With an infinitive, gerund or informal imperative the pronoun attaches to the end: voglio vederlo, guardandola, guardami. With modal verbs both positions are correct: lo devo fare = devo farlo. The key trap is the passato prossimo: when a direct pronoun comes before avere, the participle must agree — li ho visti, le ho comprate, l'ho vista.
Examples
Note
The participle agreement after a direct pronoun is audible, not just spelled: le ho comprate ends in a clear -e. This is one of the places where Italian is stricter than Spanish, where the participle never agrees with avere.
FAQ
I pronomi diretti: lo, la, li, le, mi, ti, ci, vi — what does it mean and how is it used?
They replace a direct object and normally go before the verb. The forms are mi, ti, lo (m. sg.), la (f. sg.), ci, vi, li (m. pl.), le (f. pl.). They answer 'whom?' or 'what?' with no preposition, and they go before the conjugated verb: lo vedo, la conosco, li compro. Lo and la elide before a vowel or h: l'ho visto, l'aspetto. With an infinitive, gerund or informal imperative the pronoun attaches to the end: voglio vederlo, guardandola, guardami. With modal verbs both positions are correct: lo devo fare = devo farlo. The key trap is the passato prossimo: when a direct pronoun comes before avere, the participle must agree — li ho visti, le ho comprate, l'ho vista.
I pronomi diretti: lo, la, li, le, mi, ti, ci, vi — how do you form it?
pron. + verbo — con infinito/imperativo si attacca: vederlo, guardami — con passato prossimo il participio concorda: li ho visti
I pronomi diretti: lo, la, li, le, mi, ti, ci, vi — any usage notes?
The participle agreement after a direct pronoun is audible, not just spelled: le ho comprate ends in a clear -e. This is one of the places where Italian is stricter than Spanish, where the participle never agrees with avere.