Grammar Pronouns Flashcards
What is a pronoun?
The word pronoun means “in place of a noun”. Pronouns are used instead of nouns as a way of avoiding clumsy repetitions. In Spanish pronouns take their gender and number from the noun they refer to and their form from their function in the sentence. There are different types of pronouns
What are personal pronouns?
Personal pronouns are the most neutral pronouns – they simply replace nouns without adding further information. They may refer to the person speaking, the person spoken to, or the person spoken about. Personal pronouns include subject pronouns, direct object pronouns, indirect object pronouns, reflexive pronouns, and disjunctive pronouns.
What are interrogative pronouns?
These are question words.
What are demonstrative pronouns?
Demonstrative pronouns refer to something very specific, usually indicating whether it is near to or far from the speaker in time or place.
What are possessive pronouns?
These refer to ownership.
List the subject pronouns
yo tú él ella ello usted nosotros nosotras vosotros vosotras ellos ellas ustedes
Explain subject pronouns
Because the subject of the action is contained in the verb ending in Spanish, the subject pronouns are only used for emphasis, contrast, or to avoid confusion. Usted / ustedes are perhaps used more frequently (due to possible ambiguity).
Explain the subject pronoun Ello
Ello, the neuter subject pronoun, is used to refer to an idea and means it, this, that, or the fact, though its use tends to be literary and esto is preferred in speech.
Explain prepositional pronouns.
After a preposition, Spanish uses the subject pronouns except for yo and tú.
List the prepositional pronouns (using para)
para mí para tí Para él Para ella para usted Para nosotros Para nosotras Para vosotros Para vosotras Para ellos Para ellas Para ustedes
List irregular prepositional pronouns.
Three irregular forms exist with the preposition con
- conmigo
- contigo
- consigo
When used after prepositions, él and ella can refer to X
things as well as people
After what prepositions are subject pronouns used instead of prepositional pronouns?
como según salvo excepto menos entre
What’s the difference between consigo and con él / con ella / con usted / con ellos / con ellas / con ustedes?
consigo is reflexive.
con él etc is when there’s different people
What is a direct object?
A direct object is a noun which directly receives the action of the verb. It answers the question “what receives the action from the verb?”
Subject Verb Object Yo contesto el teléfono. Ella come el taco. Nosotros miramos las películas. Ellos leen los libros.
What is the personal a?
A direct object can also be a person / people. However, if it refers to a specific person then in Spanish it requires a.
Subject Verb Object
Yo llamé a Juan.
What is a direct object pronoun?
A direct object pronoun is a shorter form that substites for the longer forms of the actual noun.
¿Quien contesta el teléfono? Yo lo contest.
¿Quien mira las películas? Nosotros las miramos.
¿Quien lee los libros? Ellos los leen.
¿Quien conoce a Maria? Yo la conozco.
List the direct object pronouns
me te le lo la nos os les los las
What is the position of the direct object in relation to the verb?
All object pronouns precede the verb, except in the imperative positive, the infinitive, and the gerund, where they are attached to the end of the verb.
¡No! ¡No voy prestárselo! (¡No se lo voy a prestar!)
When do you use the personal a?
when
(1) the direct object refers to a specific person
(2) personifying objects
(3) before indefinite expressions like alguien or nadie.
Give one exception to the personal a rule.
Personal a is not used after the verb TENER.
What is an indirect object?
Indirect objects answer the question “to whom” or “for whom”. Yo compro las flores para ti. Tú mandas la carta a Ana. José lee el cuento a los niños. Ellos traen los libros a nosotros.
What are indirect object pronouns?
They stand in for indirect objects Yo te compro las flores. Tú le mandas la carta. José les lee el cuento. Ellos nos traen los libros.
List the indirect object pronouns?
me Te le nos os les
Explain the placement when there is both a direct and indirect object pronoun
When there is both an indirect object pronoun and a direct object pronoun, the indirect always precedes the direct.
Yo compro las flores para ti.
Yo te las compro.
Ellos traen los libros a nosotros.
Ellos nos los traen.
What happens when the indirect and direct object pronouns are both third person and would therefore both begin with L,
the indirect changes to se.
- No te lo dije porque sé que odias a la señora Pérez, y no sabía si querías prestárselo.
- ¡Claro que se lo presto a él, pero ¡nunca se lo presto a ella!
What is used as the equivalent of the English possessive with parts of the body and articles of clothing.
the indirect object pronoun
- ¿Te quito el abrigo?
- No, gracias. Siempre me hace daño en el brazo cuando me lo quitas.
- Ven, Carlitos. Te lavo los manos.
- No, no. Yo mismo me las lavo.
What tells for whose benefit or disadvantage something was done.
indirect object pronoun
- ¿Me haces el almuerzo, mamá?
- Sí, si me llevas las bolsas de comida a la cocina.
what can be added to certain impersonal expressions
indirect object pronoun
Es difícil caminar cuando nieva. (It’s difficult to drive when it snows)
Me es difícil caminar cuando nieva. (It’s difficult for me to drive when it snows)
Es necesario estudiar más.
Nos es necesario estudiar más.
what can be added to a se construction with certain verbs to express unplanned occurrences. These constructions focus on the object affected rather than on the person involved.
indirect object pronoun
- Veo que se te rompieron los anteojos. (I see that you broke your glasses)
- Sí, se me cayeron en la calle. (Yes, I dropped them in the street)
- ¿Cómo se les ocurrió venir ayer? (How did you get the idea to come yesterday?)
- Se les había olvidado que la reunion era mañana. (They had forgotten that the meeting was this morning)
List the reflexive pronouns
me te se nos os se
What is a reflexive pronoun?
Reflexive pronouns are person pronouns that refer back to the subject of the sentence as when you do something to yourself.
What does it mean to use the ordinary third person object pronouns (lo, le, la, los, les, las) instead of se
the action is being done to someone else instead of the subject.
Se compó una botella de vino.
Le compró una botella de vino
List 3uses of the reflexive pronoun
1) Body and clothes
2) reciprocation
3) indefinite pronoun “one” (se + 3rd person singular)
Where is the reflexive pronoun placed when there’s an imperative?
- precede negative commands
no se acueste todavía - attached to positive commands
acuéstese
