After a regular Hausa transitive verb, a direct-object pronoun normally comes immediately after the verb: kama shi “catch him,” gaishe ta “greet her,” karanta su “read them.” In the technical verb-grade system, the regular patterns relevant here are Grade 1 verbs ending in -a and Grade 4 verbs ending in -e. Their written form usually stays recognizable before the pronoun, unlike Grade 2 verbs such as saya, whose final vowel changes visibly.
All unlabelled examples are (neutral Nigerian Standard Hausa). Ordinary boko does not mark the vowel length and tone differences that distinguish some verb frames in speech. This page therefore teaches the standard written forms and their syntax; the object-tone page treats the spoken host interaction.
The basic word order
A neutral finite clause has this order:
| Optional overt subject | Subject–TAM | Regular verb | Direct-object pronoun | Other material |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ’Yan sanda | sun | kama | shi | a tashar |
| Malama | ta | gaishe | mu | bayan aji |
| — | za mu | karanta | su | gobe |
’Yan sanda sun kama shi kusa da tashar.
The police caught him near the station.
Malamar ta gaishe mu bayan darasi.
The teacher greeted us after class.
Za mu karanta su kafin taron gobe.
We will read them before tomorrow’s meeting.
The object belongs directly with the verb, while adjuncts such as a tashar, bayan darasi, and gobe follow. The preverbal form still marks the subject and TAM. An overt noun such as ’yan sanda or malamar does not remove sun/ta.
The object paradigm after a regular verb
The forms themselves do not change from one regular verb to another:
| Object | Form | Regular-verb phrase |
|---|---|---|
| me | ni | gaishe ni |
| you, one male | ka | gaishe ka |
| you, one female | ki | gaishe ki |
| him / masculine it | shi | gaishe shi |
| her / feminine it | ta | gaishe ta |
| us | mu | gaishe mu |
| you all | ku | gaishe ku |
| them | su | gaishe su |
Maƙwabcinmu ya gaishe ni a hanya.
Our neighbor greeted me on the way.
Zan gaishe ka idan mun haɗu.
I will greet you when we meet. (addressing a male)
Ta gaishe ki a bikin, ko?
She greeted you at the celebration, right? (addressing a female)
Mun gaishe ta da safe.
We greeted her in the morning.
Baƙin sun gaishe ku kafin su tafi.
The guests greeted you all before leaving.
These are separate written words: gaishe ki, not a single fused spelling. Phonologically, however, the pronoun is closely tied to the verb; that is why its tone is sensitive to the preceding syllable.
Grade 1 verbs in -a
Regular Grade 1 verbs have a base form ending in -a. Common examples include kama “catch/hold,” karanta “read,” and yanka “cut.” Before a direct-object pronoun, the verb uses its pre-pronoun form and the pronoun follows directly.
Mai tsaron ya kama ni lokacin da na kusa faɗuwa.
The guard caught hold of me when I nearly fell.
Mun kama ka kana ƙoƙarin fita ba tare da sallama ba.
We caught you trying to leave without saying goodbye. (addressing a male)
Na karanta shi sau biyu amma ban fahimta ba.
I read it twice, but I did not understand it. (referring to a masculine singular text)
Hajara ta karanta ta a gaban ajin.
Hajara read it in front of the class. (referring to a feminine singular letter)
Mai nama ya yanka ta gida biyu.
The butcher cut it into two pieces. (referring to a feminine item)
The final vowel of a regular verb is pronounced long in the base/pre-pronoun frame and shortens before a following noun object. Standard boko writes neither vowel length, so karanta shi and karanta littafin show the same letters in the verb even though careful speech distinguishes their final-vowel frame. Learners should not invent a visible ending to represent that length.
Grade 4 verbs in -e
Regular Grade 4 verbs end in -e. Useful examples include rufe “close,” gaishe “greet,” wanke “wash,” and yanke “cut through/sever.” The direct-object pronoun again follows immediately.
Na rufe shi da makulli kafin na fita.
I locked it before I left. (referring to a masculine box or room)
Bilkisu ta rufe ta saboda ƙura.
Bilkisu closed it because of the dust. (referring to a feminine window or door)
Ma’aikaciyar jinya ta wanke shi kafin ta ɗaure raunin.
The nurse washed it before bandaging the wound. (referring to a masculine body part)
Na wanke ta jiya, amma ta sake yin datti.
I washed it yesterday, but it got dirty again. (referring to a feminine garment)
Za su yanke su domin kada su toshe hanya.
They will cut them down so that they do not block the road. (referring to plural branches)
As with Grade 1, the written -e stays the same before a pronoun and before a noun object, while speech can distinguish vowel length and tone. Do not respell a Grade 4 verb simply because the object is pronominal.
Why Grade 2 is a separate problem
Grade 2, or variable-vowel, verbs make an overt written distinction. For example, saya “buy” has sayi before a noun object but saye before a direct-object pronoun:
Na sayi rigar a kasuwa.
I bought the dress at the market. (noun object)
Na saye ta a kasuwa.
I bought it at the market. (direct-object pronoun)
This pair must not be generalized to regular Grade 1 and Grade 4 verbs. Karanta shi does not become an invented karante shi, and rufe ta does not take another visible vowel change. The Grade 2 object page develops that paradigm.
TAM can change while object placement stays stable
The subject–TAM marker changes across completive, future, negative, and subjunctive constructions, but a direct-object pronoun still follows the verb in these ordinary clauses.
Kabiru ya karanta shi jiya.
Kabiru read it yesterday.
Kabiru zai karanta shi gobe.
Kabiru will read it tomorrow.
Kabiru bai karanta shi ba.
Kabiru did not read it.
Ina so Kabiru ya karanta shi kafin taron.
I want Kabiru to read it before the meeting.
In the last example, ina so licenses the subjunctive; its ya is structurally distinct from an identically spelled plain-completive masculine form. The direct object shi remains after karanta.
The continuative requires additional care because Hausa uses a verbal noun in that aspect. Some verbal nouns change form or take possessive-type objects. Do not assume that every simple base-verb pattern on this page can be copied mechanically into the continuative.
Direct object versus indirect object
If a verb has a recipient or beneficiary, the indirect object occupies the position immediately after the verb. Its forms are mini, maka, miki, masa, mata, mana, muku, musu, not the direct-object set.
Malam ya karanta mana sanarwar.
The teacher read the announcement to us.
Malam ya karanta ta a hankali.
The teacher read it slowly. (feminine singular direct object)
In the first sentence mana is the recipient and sanarwar is what was read. In the second ta itself is the thing read. A following English us does not automatically mean Hausa direct-object mu.
Practice: replace the noun, preserve the frame
Replace a noun object with the pronoun matching its gender or number.
Ta rufe akwatin. → Ta rufe shi.
She closed the box. → She closed it. (akwati is masculine)
Ya wanke rigar. → Ya wanke ta.
He washed the shirt. → He washed it. (riga is feminine)
Sun karanta takardun. → Sun karanta su.
They read the documents. → They read them.
The pronoun's person, number, and gender come from its referent. The verb remains the regular pre-pronoun form, and the subject marker remains before it.
Common Mistakes
1. Putting the object pronoun before the verb.
❌ Na shi karanta jiya.
Incorrect — a neutral direct-object pronoun follows the verb.
✅ Na karanta shi jiya.
I read it yesterday.
2. Using an independent feminine form after the verb.
❌ Mun gaishe ita a ƙofar gida.
Incorrect in neutral object position — ita is independent.
✅ Mun gaishe ta a ƙofar gida.
We greeted her at the entrance to the house.
3. Changing a regular Grade 1 verb as though it were Grade 2.
❌ Ya karante shi da sauri.
Incorrect — regular karanta does not take invented -e before a pronoun.
✅ Ya karanta shi da sauri.
He read it quickly.
4. Ignoring the female addressee form.
❌ Za mu gaishe ka gobe.
Incorrect when speaking to one woman — ka is masculine singular.
✅ Za mu gaishe ki gobe.
We will greet you tomorrow. (addressing a female)
5. Dropping the subject–TAM marker after a noun subject.
❌ Ado kama su kusa da gida.
Incorrect — the overt subject Ado still needs masculine singular completive ya.
✅ Ado ya kama su kusa da gida.
Ado caught them near the house.
Key Takeaways
- A neutral direct-object pronoun normally follows its regular verb immediately.
- Regular Grade 1 -a and Grade 4 -e verbs keep their recognizable standard spelling before pronoun objects.
- Spoken vowel length and tone distinguish some object frames even where ordinary boko spelling does not.
- Grade 2 verbs have a separate visible vowel alternation and must not be used as the model for regular verbs.
- Subject–TAM marking remains before the verb; direct-object marking does a different job after it.
Related Topics
- Direct-Object Pronouns: Core ParadigmA2 — Learn Hausa ni, ka, ki, shi, ta, mu, ku, and su as direct objects and keep them distinct from independent, subject–TAM, indirect-object, and possessive forms.
- Direct Objects after Grade 2 VerbsA2 — Use the Grade 2 ending -e before Hausa direct-object pronouns, contrasting it with -i before noun objects and -a when no object follows.
- Object Pronoun Tone and Host InteractionA2 — Understand why the same written Hausa object pronoun has high- and low-tone realizations selected by its preceding host.
- Second Person Objects ka and kiA2 — Choose Hausa ka for one male addressee and ki for one female addressee as direct objects, and distinguish them from other second-person series.
- Third Person Objects shi and taA2 — Use Hausa shi for masculine singular and ta for feminine singular direct objects, including inanimate referents of grammatical gender.
- Subject Marking after an Overt NounA2 — Keep the required Hausa subject–TAM marker after names and full noun phrases, and make it agree with gender, number, and person.