Double pronouns in Italian are a combination of an indirect object pronounNo definition set for indirect object pronounLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. and a direct object pronounNo definition set for direct object pronounLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. or pronoun ne. We use them when both an indirect object pronoun and a direct object pronoun are required in the same sentence. For example:
→ Ordinarily the indirect object pronoun is ti(to you), but used with lo(it) as the direct object pronoun, it becomes te.
In this post, we’ll explain how these pronouns come about, how to form them, how to use them with compound tenses, and where to place them. Ready to double down on your knowledge of Italian pronouns? Let’s go!
Direct object pronouns vs. indirect object pronouns vs. double pronouns
Let’s start by quickly reviewing the difference between direct and indirect object pronouns in Italian, and when you’ll need to combine them into double pronouns.
A direct object pronoun replaces the direct object of a sentence, the part of the sentence that answers the question “verbed what/who?”
direct object
Roberta comprerà una maglietta.
Roberta will buy a t-shirt.
↓
Check out our post on Italian direct object pronouns for a full review!
An indirect object pronoun, replaces the indirect object of a sentence, which is the part of the sentence that answers the question “to/for whom?” or “to/for what?”
direct objectindirect object
Roberta comprerà una maglietta a Sandro.
Roberta will buy Sandro a t-shirt.
↓
indirect object pronoundirect object
Roberta gli comprerà una maglietta.
Roberta will buy him a t-shirt.
Check out our post on Italian indirect object pronouns for a full review!
Perfect! Now, do you see what I am seeing? 🤩
In this last example above, there is an unexplored opportunity: not only do we have an indirect object (a Sandro), but we also have a direct object (una maglietta). It’s time to try something new and replace both of them with pronouns:
direct objectindirect object
Quando Roberta comprerà una maglietta a Sandro?
When will Roberta buy Sandro a t-shirt?
↓
double pronoun
When will she buy it for him?
Did you see that? It’s a double pronoun! This particular double pronoun combines gli(for him) and la(it (f.)) to form: gliela(it to him)
Double pronouns are a combination of an indirect object pronoun and one of the and the direct object pronouns listed below:
ne
Not familiar with
ne? This is a special little word that functions as a pronoun and means (roughly) “of them” as in “two of them.” Have a look at our full post on the
Italian pronoun ne to learn more!
How to form double pronouns in Italian?
To form double pronouns in Italian, combine an indirect object pronoun with a direct object pronoun or ne. Let’s go over how the forms combine!
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gli(him) le(her) Le(form. you) | | | | | |
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Let’s go over some important considerations:
When combined, the indirect object pronoun always comes before the direct object pronoun:
The “i” in mi, ti, ci, and vi becomes an “e”:
mi + lo → me lo
ti + lo → te lo
With gli + direct object pronoun, an “e” is added after gli:
gli + lo → glielo
gli + la → gliela
In double pronouns, we use gli instead of the feminine le(to/for them (f.)). For example:
How to use double pronouns with compound tenses in Italian?
With compound tenses, double pronouns follow the same rules as direct object pronouns do:
with double pronouns, only use the auxiliary verbNo definition set for auxiliary verbLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. avere(to have);
when using double pronouns with compound tenses, the past participleNo definition set for past participleLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. has to agree in gender and number with the direct object.
As a reminder, Italian compound tenses are those tenses that have two parts:
an auxiliary verb, which can be either avere(to have) or essere(to be);
a past participle of the verb we are conjugating.
Example:
auxiliary verbpast participle
Ieri ho comprato una torta per il tuo compleanno.
Yesterday, I bought a cake for your birthday.
Since passato prossimo is one of the most used compound tenses in Italian, Let’s see how to form a sentence with double pronouns and passato prossimo.
auxiliary verbpast participledirect objectindirect object
Ieri sera ho scritto un messaggio a Giorgio.
Yesterday evening I wrote a message to Giorgio.
What’s the pronoun for the indirect object: a Giorgio?
Because a Giorgio is masculine and singular, then it would be gli(to him).
What’s the pronoun for the direct object: un messaggio?
Since un messaggio is masculine and singular, it would be lo(it (m.)) .
Let’s combine them! Remember, the indirect object goes first!
Indirect object pronoun + direct object pronoun →gli + lo = glielo
Now we replace un messaggio a Giorgio with the double pronoun glielo:
Place glielo before the verb
Make sure that the past participle agrees with the direct object (lo = masculine, singular)
double pronounauxiliary verbpast participle
Did you notice? When a double pronoun ends with la and lo is used before a vowel or “h,” that ending becomes l’ instead!
Hanno dato un telefono a Elisa They gave a phone to Elisa. | |
Ho mandato una cartolina a Lorenzo. I sent a postcard to Lorenzo. | |
But notice that the ending on the past participle still reflects whether the original direct object pronoun was la or lo → dato(masculine) vs. mandata(feminine)
Double pronouns with le, li, or as ne, however, don’t lose their “e” before vowel/h (yeah!)
He/she bought them for you.
They got three (of something) for us.
Where to place double pronouns in Italian?
Double pronouns most often go before the conjugated verbNo definition set for conjugated verbLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.. However, there are three cases where they can follow the verb instead:
with the imperativeNo definition set for imperativeLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., double pronouns go after the verb and are attached to it.
with modal verbsNo definition set for modal verbsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., double pronouns can go either before the verb or after the infinitiveNo definition set for infinitiveLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., attached to it, and the infinitive drops the “e”:
double pronounmodal verbinfinitive
Glielo vorrei dire. / Vorrei dirglielo.
I would like to tell him/her about it
with the gerundNo definition set for gerundLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., double pronouns go after the verb and attach to it:
Dicendoglielo, ho capito che era d’accordo con me.
By telling it to her/him, I understood he/she agreed with me.
To sum up
Here are the main takeaways from today’s article:
Double pronouns are a combination of an indirect and direct object pronoun
When forming double pronouns, the indirect object pronoun always comes first
When the indirect and direct object pronouns combine,
the “i” of the indirect object pronoun becomes an “e” in most cases(for example mi+lo = me lo)
gli + direct object pronoun just adds an “e” and becomes glielo, gliela, etc
when we have double pronoun + compound tense, such as the passato prossimo, the past participle agrees in gender/number with the direct object pronoun.
double pronouns often go before the verb, except with the imperative, with modal verbs and infinitives, and gerunds.
Practice Italian double pronouns by following the link! 💪 🧠
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