Direct Object Pronouns (Me, Te, Lo, La, Nos, Los, Las) | Spanish (Latin America) Grammar

A direct object is the thing or person that directly receives the action of a verb. In "I see the book," the book is the direct object. Spanish uses a set of short pronouns to replace direct objects once they're known — so that instead of repeating el libro, you just say lo.

The full set

Person	Singular	Plural
1st	me	nos
2nd	te	los / las (ustedes) — os in Spain
3rd masculine	lo	los
3rd feminine	la	las

In Latin America, os is not used — it belongs to the Spain-only vosotros system. You will never need to produce it.

How they replace nouns

A direct object pronoun substitutes for a noun phrase that would otherwise follow the verb. The pronoun must match the gender and number of the noun it replaces.

Tengo el libro. → Lo tengo.

I have the book. → I have it. (el libro → lo, masculine singular.)

Veo la casa. → La veo.

I see the house. → I see it. (la casa → la, feminine singular.)

Compro los boletos. → Los compro.

I buy the tickets. → I buy them. (los boletos → los, masculine plural.)

Cierro las ventanas. → Las cierro.

I close the windows. → I close them. (las ventanas → las, feminine plural.)

People are replaced the same way

When the direct object is a person, the pronouns still apply — including lo and la for third person. (Note: Spain often uses le instead of lo for male people; this is leísmo, covered in Lo vs Le.)

Veo a María. → La veo.

I see María. → I see her.

Escuchan a los niños. → Los escuchan.

They listen to the children. → They listen to them.

Notice the personal a in veo a María. Spanish requires it before specific human direct objects. See The Personal A.

First and second person: pronoun for "me" and "you"

In the first and second person, you don't need to replace anything — these pronouns just mean "me," "you," "us."

Ella me llama todos los días.

She calls me every day.

Te escucho.

I'm listening to you.

Nos invitaron a la fiesta.

They invited us to the party.

Placement: before the conjugated verb

The default position is immediately before the conjugated verb. Spanish does not place direct object pronouns after the verb the way English does.

Lo compro.

I buy it.

La conozco.

I know her.

No los vi.

I didn't see them. (Negation stays before: no + pronoun + verb.)

There are exceptions with infinitives, gerunds, and commands — see Placement of Direct Object Pronouns.

Neuter lo: standing in for an idea

The pronoun lo can also represent an entire idea, statement, or adjective — not a specific masculine noun.

¿Sabes que llegó Pedro? — Sí, lo sé.

Did you know Pedro arrived? — Yes, I know (it).

Ella está cansada, pero no lo parece.

She's tired, but she doesn't seem (it).

This "neuter lo" is very common with verbs like saber, creer, decir, parecer, ser, and estar.

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English often drops "it" after verbs like know and think: "I know." Spanish almost always keeps lo: Lo sé, Lo creo, Lo pienso. Beginners who say "sé" alone sound unfinished.

Summary table with verb agreement

Noun	Gender/Number	Pronoun
el libro	m. sg.	lo
la mesa	f. sg.	la
los libros	m. pl.	los
las mesas	f. pl.	las
un perro	m. sg.	lo
María	f. sg.	la
Juan y Pedro	m. pl.	los

¿Dónde está el teléfono? — No lo sé.

Where is the phone? — I don't know.

¿Viste a mis hermanas? — Sí, las vi ayer.

Did you see my sisters? — Yes, I saw them yesterday.

Don't mix up direct and indirect

Be careful not to confuse direct object pronouns with indirect object pronouns. In the third person, they are different:

Category	Masculine	Feminine
Direct	lo / los	la / las
Indirect	le / les	le / les

See Indirect Object Pronouns to learn when le is the right choice.

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A quick check: the direct object answers "what?" or "whom?" after the verb. The indirect object answers "to whom?" or "for whom?". I give the book → direct object: the book. I give the book to her → indirect object: her.

Summary

Direct object pronouns are me, te, lo, la, nos, los, las.
They must match the gender and number of the noun they replace.
They go before the conjugated verb: lo veo, la compro.
Neuter lo can replace an entire idea or clause: lo sé, lo creo.
The 3rd-person forms are lo/la/los/las — not le (that's indirect).

Next: The Personal A.