Direct and indirect object pronouns in Spanish—me, te, lo, la, le, nos, los, las, les, se—travel around the sentence in ways that feel random to English speakers. They sometimes precede the verb, sometimes attach to its end, and sometimes change form (le becomes se) for reasons nobody warned you about. This page walks through the mistakes that turn up most often in learner writing and tells you exactly what rule each one breaks.
The big rule in one sentence
Object pronouns go immediately before a conjugated verb, and attached to the end of an infinitive, gerund, or affirmative command. That's it—everything else is application of that rule.
Mistake 1: Pronouns after a conjugated verb
English speakers routinely put pronouns after the verb, echoing English word order (I see it). In Spanish, with a regular conjugated verb, the pronoun comes before.
❌ Yo veo lo.
Wrong: The pronoun can't sit after a conjugated verb on its own.
✅ Yo lo veo.
Correct: I see it.
❌ Ella compra lo en el mercado.
Wrong: Same problem.
✅ Ella lo compra en el mercado.
Correct: She buys it at the market.
Mistake 2: Attaching pronouns to a bare infinitive when there's a helper verb
With constructions like quiero ver, voy a comprar, puedo ayudar, you have two legal places for the pronoun: before the helper verb, or attached to the infinitive. But you cannot leave it floating between them as a separate word.
❌ Quiero ver lo mañana.
Wrong: 'lo' can't float as a separate word.
✅ Quiero verlo mañana.
Correct: I want to see it tomorrow.
✅ Lo quiero ver mañana.
Correct: Same meaning — pronoun climbed to the conjugated verb.
❌ Voy a comprar lo.
Wrong: Same problem.
✅ Voy a comprarlo. / Lo voy a comprar.
Correct: Both are fine.
Mistake 3: Pronouns with the gerund
The same two-position rule applies with estar + gerundio. You can say lo está mirando or está mirándolo, but not está mirando lo—and never with the pronoun after everything in the sentence.
❌ Estoy mirando lo.
Wrong: the pronoun can't float.
✅ Estoy mirándolo.
Correct: I'm watching it.
✅ Lo estoy mirando.
Correct: Same meaning, pronoun climbed to estar.
✅ No lo estoy mirando. / No estoy mirándolo.
Correct: I'm not watching it.
Mistake 4: Missing the accent when attaching
When you attach a pronoun to the end of a gerund, affirmative command, or infinitive and the stress would otherwise shift, you must write a new accent mark to keep the stress on its original syllable. English speakers forget this constantly.
❌ Lavate las manos.
Wrong: missing accent on lávate.
✅ Lávate las manos.
Correct: Wash your hands.
✅ Está hablándome.
Correct: She's talking to me.
✅ Dámelo. / Dímelo. / Cómpramelo.
Correct: Commands with two attached pronouns almost always need an accent.
See Imperative accent marks for the precise rule.
Mistake 5: Le becomes se before lo/la/los/las
Spanish dislikes the sound of le lo, le la, les los, or les las, and converts le/les to se whenever a direct object pronoun starting with l- follows.
❌ Le lo digo mañana.
Wrong: le + lo becomes se + lo.
❌ Les la mandé ayer.
Wrong: les + la becomes se + la.
✅ Se la mandé ayer.
Correct: I sent it to them yesterday.
Mistake 6: Pronoun order is indirect, then direct
When you combine an indirect object pronoun with a direct object pronoun, the indirect one always comes first. The memory tag is "ID": Indirect before Direct.
❌ Lo me das.
Wrong: direct before indirect is the wrong order.
✅ Me lo das.
Correct: You give it to me.
❌ La te mando.
Wrong: same problem.
✅ Te la mando.
Correct: I'll send it to you.
See Combined pronoun order for the full pattern.
Mistake 7: Doubling up pronouns for the same role
You can have one direct object pronoun and one indirect object pronoun per verb, never two of the same kind. Learners sometimes add a second lo for emphasis after already including it.
❌ Dámelo lo.
Wrong: lo is already there — there can only be one.
✅ Dámelo.
Correct: Give it to me.
❌ Me lo dio lo.
Wrong: same problem.
✅ Me lo dio.
Correct: She gave it to me.
Mistake 8: Negative commands flip the placement
Affirmative commands attach the pronoun to the verb (dime, háblame, dámelo). Negative commands put the pronoun before the verb (no me digas, no me hables, no me lo des). English speakers often copy the affirmative pattern into the negative and get it wrong.
❌ No dígame eso.
Wrong: in negative commands the pronoun goes before the verb.
✅ No me diga eso.
Correct: Don't tell me that. (formal)
❌ Dime no.
Wrong: that's not how negation works.
✅ No me digas.
Correct: Don't tell me. / No way!
✅ Dámelo. / No me lo des.
Correct: Give it to me. / Don't give it to me.
Mistake 9: Pronouns with "hay que" and impersonal se
With hay que + infinitive (one must), the pronoun attaches to the infinitive or, more commonly, goes before hay only if a modal verb allows pronoun climbing—which with hay que it doesn't.
❌ Lo hay que hacer.
Wrong: pronouns can't climb past 'hay que'.
✅ Hay que hacerlo.
Correct: It has to be done.
✅ Hay que decírselo.
Correct: It has to be told to him/her.
Mistake 10: Reflexive pronouns behave the same way
Reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, nos, se) follow all the same placement rules. The one extra thing to remember is that with nos and se in affirmative commands, you sometimes drop a letter: sentémonos (not sentémosnos), váyanse (not váyansse).
❌ Me no lavo las manos.
Wrong: No goes before the pronoun.
✅ No me lavo las manos.
Correct: I don't wash my hands.
✅ Sentémonos aquí.
Correct: Let's sit here. (drop the -s of -mos before nos)
Quick summary table
| Verb form | Pronoun goes | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Conjugated (present, past, etc.) | Before the verb | Lo veo. |
| Negative command | Before the verb | No me digas. |
| Affirmative command | Attached to the end | Dímelo. |
| Infinitive | Attached or before helper verb | Quiero verlo. / Lo quiero ver. |
| Gerund | Attached or before helper verb | Estoy mirándolo. / Lo estoy mirando. |
| Two pronouns | Indirect before direct | Me lo das. |
| le + lo/la/los/las | le becomes se | Se lo digo. |
For the full mechanics of each placement rule, see direct object placement, combined with infinitives, and combined with commands.
Related Topics
- Placement of Direct Object PronounsA2 — Where direct object pronouns go in the sentence: before conjugated verbs
- Combined Object Pronouns: Order RulesB1 — When indirect and direct object pronouns appear together, which comes first
- Combined Pronouns with Infinitives and GerundsB1 — Attaching or placing combined object pronouns with infinitives and gerunds
- Combined Pronouns with CommandsB1 — Attaching both pronouns to affirmative commands and placing them before negative
- Le/Les → Se before Lo/La/Los/LasB1 — When two pronouns combine, le and les become se to avoid the sound le lo
- Accent Marks on Commands with PronounsB1 — The stress rules that explain exactly when to add a written accent to a command form with attached pronouns.