Pronouns: Direct Objects

01

The Forms

• mă - me
• te - you (one person)
• îl - him / it (masculine); o - her / it (feminine)
• ne - us
• vă - you (plural / polite)
• îi - them (masculine); le - them (feminine)

• Te văd.

  I see you.

• Îl cunosc.

  I know him.

• Nu o văd.

  I don't see her.

02

They Go Before the Verb

Unlike English, the pronoun comes in front of the conjugated verb, not after it: te văd is literally "you I-see".

• Mă cheamă Alex.

  My name is Alex. (literally: me they-call Alex)

• Ne ajută.

  He helps us.

03

Contractions and Commands

Before a vowel these pronouns often contract with a hyphen, and in the perfect tense o jumps behind the participle:

• Te-am văzut.

  I saw you.

• Am cumpărat-o.

  I bought it.

In a positive command the pronoun attaches to the end of the verb: cheamă-l (call him).

04

Two Pronouns Together

When a direct object pronoun meets an indirect one ("give it to me"), the indirect comes first and the two usually fuse into one hyphenated unit:

• Mi-l dai?

  Will you give it to me? (to-me + it)

• Ți-o spun.

  I'll tell it to you.