In Brazilian Portuguese, you can use direct and indirect object pronouns to replace the objects of a sentence.
Direct object pronouns replace direct objects (nouns that are directly affected by the action of the verb).
direct objectTrouxe um bolo para Maria. → Trouxe-o para Maria.Translation: I brought a cake for Maria. → I brought it for Maria.Indirect object pronouns replace indirect objects (nouns that are benefited by the action, often by receiving something).
indirect objectTrouxe um bolo para Maria. → Trouxe-lhe um bolo.Translation: I brought a cake for Maria. → I brought her a cake.
Like other pronouns, object pronouns in Brazilian Portuguese can take on several different forms to reflect characteristics of the nouns they replace. In this post, we’ll review the different forms of the direct and indirect object pronouns and discuss where to place these object pronouns in the sentence, including in sentences with compound verbs. Are you ready to learn more? Let’s jump right into it!
What are direct and indirect objects?
Direct and indirect objects are nouns or pronouns that complement the meaning of a verb. Direct objects answer the questions o que/quem? meaning what/who? and are often linked to the verb without a preposition, as in:
Indirect objects answer the questions para quem / por quem meaning to who(m)? / for who(m)? and are often connected to the verb with a preposition.
What are the direct and indirect object pronouns in Brazilian Portuguese?
The direct and indirect object pronouns in Brazilian Portuguese are illustrated in the table below.
| Subject pronouns | Direct object pronouns | Indirect object pronouns |
|---|---|---|
eu meaning I | me meaning me | me meaning me |
tu meaning you | te meaning you | te meaning you |
você meaning you | o, a meaning you, him, her, it | lhe meaning you, him, her, it |
ele, ela meaning he, she, it | ||
nós meaning we | nos meaning us | nos meaning us |
vós meaning you, formal | vos meaning you, formal | vos meaning you, formal |
vocês meaning you, pl. | os, as meaning you, them | lhes meaning you, them |
vocês meaning they |
Direct and indirect object pronouns can be placed in a few different positions within a sentence:
after the verb, attached by a hyphen (most common)
before the verb
in the middle of the verb, between the stem and the ending
We’ll discuss the rules for placing direct and indirect objects in a sentence below, but first let’s talk about the pronouns themselves.
The forms of direct object pronouns vs. indirect object pronouns
In many cases the direct and indirect object pronouns in Brazilian Portuguese look the same:
me → “me” or “to/for me”
te → “you (sg.)” or “to/for you (sg.)”
nos → “us” or “to/for us”
vos → “you (pl.)” or “to/for you (pl.)”
| Direct Object Pronoun | Indirect Object Pronoun |
|---|---|
Você esperou-me por muito tempo? Translation: Did you await me for a long time? | Os vizinhos deram-me boas-vindas. Translation: The neighbors welcomed me. Literally: The neighbors gave me welcome. |
João veio ajudar-nos. Translation: João came to help us. | Ele mostrou-nos a sua casa nova. Translation: He showed us his new home. |
You’ll only need to make a distinction between o(s), a(s) and lhe(s):
| Direct Object Pronoun | Indirect Object Pronoun |
|---|---|
Comprei-o. Translation: I bought it (m). | Comprei-lhe o livro. Translation: I bought him/her a book. |
Comprei-a. Translation: I bought it (f). | |
Comprei-os. Translation: I bought them (m). | Comprei-lhes o livro. Translation: I bought them a book. |
Comprei-as. Translation: I bought them (f). |
When do the direct object pronouns ‘o, a, os, as’ change their forms?
The direct object pronouns o, a, os, as meaning him, her, it, them change their forms in two cases:
when placed after verbs ending with the consonants -r, -s, -z
when placed after verbs ending in the nasal sounds -ão, õe, -m
Let’s take a closer look at these two cases where the direct object pronoun must change.
After verbs ending in -r, -s, -z
If the verb ends with -r, -s, or -z…
remove these consonants from the end of the verb:
encontramos → encontramo-and add an l to the start of the direct object pronoun form:
o, a, os, as → lo, la, los, las
For example:
Base sentence With direct object pronoun Eu posso comprar o bolo.Translation: I can buy the cake.Eu posso comprá-lo.Translation: I can buy it.Encontramos o Marcos no cinema.Translation: We met Marcos at the cinema.Encontramo-lo no cinema.Translation: We met him at the cinema.Fiz o bolo ontem.Translation: I made the cake yesterday.Fi-lo ontem.Translation: I made it yesterday.After verbs ending in a nasal sound (-ão, õe, -m)
For verbs ending with the nasal sounds -ão, -õe, and -m, the direct object pronouns take an n at the beginning:
o, a, os, as → no, na, nos, nas
For example:
Base sentence With direct object pronoun Eles levaram as crianças para a escola.Translation: They took the kids to the school.Eles levaram-nas para a escola.Translation: They took them to the school.Põe o livro dentro da mochila.Translation: Put the book inside the backpack.Põe-no dentro da mochila.Translation: Put it inside the backpack.
There is another instance where you may see a different form for direct (or indirect!) object pronouns in Brazilian Portuguese; sometimes, the direct and indirect object pronouns can contract when the two are used in a sentence together. Keep reading!
What are double object pronouns in Brazilian Portuguese?
Double object pronouns are used in sentences in which both the direct object and indirect object are represented by a pronoun. In these cases, the direct object pronoun and indirect object pronoun form a contraction, and we call these contracted pronouns “double object pronouns.”
For example:
Base Sentence | direct objectindirect object Trouxe um bolo para Maria. Translation: I brought a cake for Maria. | |
Direct / Indirect Object Pronouns | direct object Trouxe-o para Maria. Translation: I brought it for Maria. | indirect object Trouxe-lhe um bolo. Translation: I brought her a cake. |
Double Object Pronoun | double object pronoun Trouxe-lho. Translation: I brought it for her. lhe + o = lho | |
The direct object pronouns o/a and os/as can contract with any of the indirect object pronouns to form a contraction. Here are all the possible contractions between direct and indirect object pronouns.
Indirect objects | Direct objects | |||
o meaning him, it | a meaning her, it | os meaning them | as meaning them | |
me meaning me | mo | ma | mos | mas |
te meaning you | to | ta | tos | tas |
lhe meaning him, her, it | lho | lha | lhos | lhas |
nos meaning us | no-lo | no-la | no-los | no-las |
vos meaning you | vo-lo | vo-la | vo-los | vo-las |
lhes meaning them | lho | lha | lhos | lhas |
These contractions are possible, but they are comparatively rare. Most native speakers of Brazilian Portuguese will choose to use only one object pronoun at a time. It is also possible to completely drop the direct object pronoun o completely, as in:
Where to put direct and indirect object pronouns in a sentence?
In Brazilian Portuguese, direct and indirect object pronouns are typically placed after the verb (attached via a hyphen), but there are some instances where native speakers will also use these object pronouns before the verb or between the verb stem and verb ending instead.
In formal writing, native speakers tend to follow the standard grammar rule and place the direct and indirect object pronouns after the verb and linked to it with a hyphen, as in:
- verbdirect object pronounLúcia ajudou-a no trabalho.Translation: Lúcia helped her at work.Sigam-me, por favor.Translation: Follow me, please.Eles esperam-me.Translation: They wait for me.
However, there are some specific cases (discussed below) when the pronoun will come before the verb, even in formal language. Also in very formal Brazilian Portuguese, the pronoun may come between the stem and the ending in the future tense or present conditional tense.
In informal Brazilian Portuguese, many native speakers prefer to place direct and indirect object pronouns before the verb, as in:
- verbdirect object pronounEles me esperam.Translation: They wait for me.
And sometimes, a direct object pronoun is completely omitted:
- verbdirect object pronounLúcia a ajudou. → Lúcia ajudou.Translation: Lúcia helped.
In some cases, we may have two verbs that are used together, called compound verbs. When this happens, it is still quite common to see pronouns follow the verb, but there are some extra rules to learn, which we’ll cover at the end of this section.
Let’s look a bit more closely at the more exceptional cases here.
When to place direct and indirect object pronouns before the verb?
It is common to place direct and indirect object pronouns before the verb in informal Brazilian Portuguese, but even in more formal speech and writing, there are a few cases where the direct or indirect object pronoun can come before the verb.
With expressions of negation
When we use an expression of negation, like ninguém meaning no one, nunca meaning never, não meaning no, de modo algum meaning no way, the object pronoun comes between the negation and the verb:
negationdirect object pronounverbNinguém te viu chegar.Translation: No one saw you arrive.Não me sigam.Translation: Do not follow me.With indefinite pronouns and adverbs
When a sentence starts with an adverb or indefinite pronoun like aqui meaning here or tudo meaning everything, all, and that adverb or indefinite pronoun is not followed by a comma, the object pronoun comes before the verb:
adverbdirect object pronounverbAqui te vi crescer.Translation: Here I saw you grow up.Phrases that begin with interrogative words
In phrases beginning with interrogative words like quem meaning who or por que meaning why, the object pronoun comes before the verb:
interrogative worddirect object pronounverbQuem te convidou para a festa?Translation: Who invited you to the party?Subordinating conjunctions
You’ll always put the object pronoun before the verb after certain subordinating conjunctions, such as embora meaning although, porque meaning because, quando meaning when, and conforme meaning as:
subordinating conjunctionindirect object pronounverbConforme lhe disse, vou sair mais cedo hoje.Translation: As I told you/him/her, I'm leaving early today.After relative pronouns
After relative pronouns, such as que meaning that, the object pronoun will precede the verb:
relative pronoundirect object pronounverbAdotei o gatinho que me lambeu.Translation: I adopted the kitten that licked me.
When to put an object pronoun between the stem and the ending?
In very formal Brazilian Portuguese, sometimes you may see direct and indirect object pronouns placed between the stem of a verb and the ending when the verb appears in the future tense or in the present conditional.
Future tense
verbindirect objectMostrarei ao Miguel toda a empresa hoje.Translation: I will show Miguel the entire company today.Mostrar-lhe-ei toda a empresa hoje.Translation: I will show him the entire company today.formalPresent conditional
verbdirect objectAjudaria a Marta se tivesse tempo.Translation: I would help Martha if I had time.Ajudá-la-ia se tivesse tempo.Translation: I would help her if I had time.
However, even in formal written Brazilian Portuguese, we rarely place pronouns between the stem and the ending. Instead, native speakers will use a different placement, for example:
Replacements for mostrar-lhe-ei meaning I will show him in everyday or formal speech:
- verbstressed pronounMostrarei para ele.Translation: I will show him.Literally: I will show to him.Here, we use a stressed pronoun instead of an indirect object pronoun.
- verbindirect object pronounVou mostrar-lhe.Translation: I am going to show him.Here, we form the future by combining ir meaning to go + infinitive verb. Because the future tense is not needed, we can put the indirect object pronoun in another location.
Replacements for ajudá-la-ia meaning I would help her in informal speech:
- Ajudaria.Translation: I would help.Here we drop the object pronoun altogether.
- Ajudaria ela.Translation: I would help her.Literally: I would help she.Here we use a subject pronoun instead of a direct object pronoun. This is technically ungrammatical but the substitution is common in informal settings.
Where to place direct and indirect object pronouns with compound verbs?
When direct and indirect object pronouns are used with compound verbs, the placement of the direct or indirect object depends on the type of compound verb being used, as well as on your level of formality. Let’s look at the main types of compound verbs.
With modal verbs
When we use a modal verb, like ir meaning to go, começar meaning to start, to begin, querer meaning to want, poder meaning to be able to, can, or estar meaning to be, it’s generally used in the construction:
modal verb
main verb
infinitive
In these kinds of constructions, direct and indirect object pronouns can either follow the main verb (infinitive) or the modal verb. It is a little more formal, though, to attach the pronoun after the infinitive.
✅ Quero-te convidar para o meu aniversário.
In either case, the pronoun is usually preceded by the hyphen.
Verbs in continuous tenses
The continuous tenses are formed by combining auxiliary verb estar meaning to be with the main verb in its gerund form (ending in -ndo). In these cases, the direct and indirect object pronouns should follow the gerund.
Verbs in perfect tenses
Like English, Brazilian Portuguese uses the verbs ter/haver meaning to have + past participle to make perfect tenses. In these cases, the direct and indirect object pronouns should be placed after the auxiliary verb.
However, in informal Brazilian Portuguese, many speakers would prefer to place the pronoun before the auxiliary verb, omit it, or even use a subject pronoun instead:
Eu tinha feito.
Eu tinha feito ele.
In the last example, the use of ele meaning it as a direct object is ungrammatical according to standard grammar rules, however you will often hear this substitution made in informal spoken Brazilian Portuguese.
In summary
In this post, we reviewed the forms of direct and indirect object pronouns as well as their placement in a sentence. Here are the most important take-aways:
The direct object pronouns are: me, te, o, a, nos, vos, os, as
The indirect object pronouns are: me, te, lhe, nos, vos, lhes
The direct object pronouns o, a, os, as become lo, la, los, las after verbs ending with -r, -s, -z and become no, na, nos, nas after verbs ending with a nasal sound.
Generally, direct and indirect object pronouns are placed after the verb and connected to it with a hyphen. However, they can sometimes be used before the verb, between the stem and the ending, or between two verbs in a compound tense, depending on various factors, like:
Formality (before the verb is common in informal speech)
The presence of certain expressions (e.g. negation, adverbs, indefinite pronouns, interrogatives, relative pronouns, conjunctions)
The type of compound verb
Now, why don’t you practice forming and using direct and indirect object pronouns in Brazilian Portuguese with these activities!
:quality(80))
:quality(75))
:quality(75))
:quality(75))
:quality(75))
:quality(75))
:quality(75))
:quality(75))
:quality(75))
:quality(75))
:quality(75))
:quality(75))
:quality(75))