The direct object is what the action affects; the indirect object is usually the recipient.
In precise terms
With a ditransitive verb, the direct object is the argument denoting the entity acted upon and the indirect object the recipient or beneficiary. Languages distinguish them by case, adposition, position or verb agreement.
An example
Она дала мне книгу.
She gave me a book.
What is going on here
Russian marks the distinction with case: 'мне' is dative (the recipient) and 'книгу' is accusative (the thing given). Word order can vary because the cases carry the information; English has to rely on position instead.
Why this matters when you are learning a language
Getting these the wrong way round changes who received what. In case-marking languages the error is immediately ungrammatical; in English it silently changes the meaning.
Across languages
German and Russian use dative for the recipient; Spanish uses the preposition 'a' plus clitic doubling; Swahili can mark only one object on the verb, and which one wins is governed by rules of its own.
Related terms
- ObjectBeginner — The part of a clause that the action is done to.
- Transitive and intransitive verbsIntermediate — A transitive verb takes an object; an intransitive one does not.
- Grammatical caseIntermediate — Endings on nouns showing their role in the sentence — who did it, who it was done to, whose it is.
- ValencyAdvanced — How many participants a verb requires.
Where to go next
- Language guides — See grammatical and lexical categories used in context.
- Terminology quiz — Test the terms on this page.