Breakdown of El tigre está aquí; lo veo dormir detrás del elefante.
ver
to see / to look / appear
aquí
here
estar
to be (location/state)
del
from the / of the
Questions & Answers about El tigre está aquí; lo veo dormir detrás del elefante.
The English translation says 'sleeping'. Why does the Spanish sentence use the infinitive dormir instead of the gerund durmiendo?
With verbs of physical perception like ver (to see), you can use either the infinitive or the gerund. Using the infinitive (dormir) often implies you see the action as a whole or as a fact, while the gerund (durmiendo) emphasizes the action in progress. Both are correct here, and Spanish often uses the infinitive where English prefers the '-ing' form.
Why is the pronoun lo placed before veo? Could I attach it to the end of dormir?
In this specific structure (perception verb + infinitive), the direct object pronoun must go before the conjugated verb (lo veo dormir). You cannot attach it to the infinitive here. This is different from normal conjugated verb + infinitive pairs (like quiero verlo), where attaching the pronoun to the end is allowed.
Does lo refer to the tiger or the elephant?
It refers to el tigre (the tiger). lo is the masculine singular direct object pronoun meaning 'him' or 'it'. The tiger is the object you are seeing, while the elephant is just part of the location phrase (detrás del elefante).
Why does it say del elefante instead of de el elefante?