Conosci Marco? Sì, lo conosco da anni.Do you know Marco? Yes, I've known him for years.
A direct object answers the question what? or whom? after the verb: Vedo Marco (I see whom? Marco). To avoid repeating the noun, Italian replaces it with a direct object pronoun, and puts it before the verb: Lo vedo. (I see him.)
Quick shortcut: mi, ti, lo, la, ci, vi, li, le. The pronoun stands before the conjugated verb: La compro. Non li vedo. Ci chiamano. Third person has four forms because it matches the gender and number of the noun it replaces.
The forms
| Person | Pronoun | Example |
|---|---|---|
| me | mi | Marco mi chiama. (Marco calls me.) |
| you (informal) | ti | Ti aspetto qui. (I'll wait for you here.) |
| him / it (masculine) | lo | Lo vedo. (I see him / it.) |
| her / it (feminine) | la | La conosco. (I know her.) |
| you (formal) | La | La ringrazio. (I thank you.) |
| us | ci | Ci invitano a cena. (They invite us to dinner.) |
| you (plural) | vi | Vi vedo domani. (I'll see you tomorrow.) |
| them (masculine or mixed) | li | Li chiamo subito. (I'll call them right away.) |
| them (feminine) | le | Le prendo io. (I'll take them.) |
Italian has no neuter "it": things are masculine or feminine like their nouns. Il pane → lo compro; la torta → la compro; i biscotti → li compro; le mele → le compro. For the formal Lei, see Formal address with Lei.
Replacing a noun
- Compro il pane. → Lo compro. (I buy the bread. → I buy it.)
- Vedo Anna. → La vedo. (I see Anna. → I see her.)
- Vedo i miei genitori. → Li vedo. (I see my parents. → I see them.)
- Prendiamo le chiavi. → Le prendiamo. (We take the keys. → We take them.)
Elision
Lo and la drop their vowel before a verb that begins with a vowel or h: l'ho visto, l'aspetto, l'amo. Li and le never elide: li aspetto, le ho viste.
Negatives and questions
Non goes before the pronoun, and the pronoun stays before the verb in a question too:
- Non lo vedo. (I don't see it.)
- Lo conosci? (Do you know him?)
- Perché non mi chiami? (Why don't you call me?)
In the passato prossimo
The pronoun stands before the auxiliary: Lo ho visto becomes L'ho visto. With lo, la, li, le the participle must agree with the pronoun: L'ho vista (a woman or a feminine noun), Li ho presi, Le ho comprate. With mi, ti, ci, vi agreement is optional: Mi hai visto / vista? See Agreement of the past participle with object pronouns and Position of object pronouns.
Stressed forms
For emphasis, or after a preposition, Italian uses the stressed pronouns: Chiamo te, non lui. See Stressed pronouns after prepositions. For "to him / to her", see Indirect object pronouns.
Common mistakes
- ❌ Compro lo. → ✅ Lo compro. (the pronoun goes before the verb)
- ❌ Non vedo lo. → ✅ Non lo vedo. (non + pronoun + verb)
- ❌ Le vedo for i libri → ✅ Li vedo. (i libri is masculine plural)
- ❌ Lo ho visto. → ✅ L'ho visto. (elision before ho)
Quick check
Replace the noun with a pronoun.
- Vedo Marco. → ____ vedo.
- Compro la torta. → ____ compro.
- Vedo i miei genitori. → ____ vedo.
- Prendiamo le chiavi. → ____ prendiamo.
- Luca chiama noi. → Luca ____ chiama.
- Ho comprato il pane. → ____ ho comprato (with elision).
Show answers
- Lo 2. La 3. Li 4. Le 5. ci 6. L'
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Key takeaways
- The direct object pronouns are mi, ti, lo, la, ci, vi, li, le.
- They stand before the conjugated verb: Lo vedo.
- In the third person the pronoun matches the gender and number of the noun: lo / la / li / le.
- Lo and la elide before a vowel or h: l'ho visto; li and le do not.
- Non goes before the pronoun: Non lo vedo.
- In the passato prossimo, the participle must agree with lo, la, li, le (L'ho vista); with mi, ti, ci, vi agreement is optional.
