DIRECT AND INDIRECT
OBJECT
1) DIRECT OBJECT
The direct object
of a sentence is the person or thing that is most directly affected by the
action or state described by the verb. Direct object may refer to what the
subject of the sentence has, or gets, or does something to, or does something
with. The direct object normally follows the verb in a sentence.
Example:
-
They have two sons and two daughters.
-
He was reading a book.
-
They built their own house.
-
I don’t know them very well.
-
Ratha has got $20 from his brother.
2) INDIRECT OBJECT
The indirect
object of a sentence is the word or word-group that describes the person or
thing that the direct object is given to or done for. The
indirect object usually stands between the verb and the direct object in a
sentence.
Example:
- I gave her
a book.
-
He bought his nephew a new bicycle.
-
Can you lend him $10?
-
Fetch me a bucket of water, please.
-
This training offers unemployed people a chance for new jobs in this
constant changing world.
NOTE:
Ø The indirect
object of a sentence can usually be replaced by a group of words beginning with
a preposition such as to or for:
Example:
-
I gave her a book. or
- I gave a book to
her.
- He bought his
nephew a new bicycle. or
- He bought a new
bicycle for his nephew.
Ø But in some cases
this is not possible, especially with the verb give when what
is given is an action rather than a thing:
Example:
-
He gave his bike a clean. Not: He gave a clean to his bike.
- Can you give me
a push, please? Not: Can you give a push to me, please?