Transcript Find the Direct Object

Direct and Indirect
Objects
in Sentences
Subjects
• You know already that a subject is what
or who a sentence is about. A subject is
either a noun or a pronoun.
• An object is also a noun or a pronoun,
but it is not what the sentence is about!
Objects
• Objects depend on what a verb is “doing” in a
sentence. Objects follow verbs.
• One kind of object is called a direct object.
• A sentence doesn’t need a direct object to be
a sentence.
The direct object is not the
subject of the sentence, it’s the
noun receiving the action.
The direct object isn’t doing
anything, it’s having something
done to it.
Emily threw the stick.
Explanation: Emily is the subject; she’s
the one doing the throwing.
Stick is the object; the stick isn’t doing
anything, but something is being done to
the stick—it is being thrown.
Find the Direct Object
Frank and Ed feared loneliness.
•What is the subject? Frank, Ed
•What is the verb? Feared
•To find the object, ask: what or who did Frank
or Ed fear?
Answer: loneliness. Loneliness is the
direct object.
Find the Direct Object
50 Cent threw kisses to Lindsay.
In this sentence ask yourself, “50 Cent
threw what?”
Answer: kisses. “Kisses” is the direct
object of the verb “threw.”
Find the Direct Objects—there are TWO
following two verbs.
The burglar gagged the gangster and stole his car.
• In this sentence ask yourself,
“Who did the burglar gag?”
Answer: the gangster.
• Also, ask yourself, “What did the burglar
steal?”
Answer: his car.
Angie found the matches and started a
bonfire on the field.
• Ask yourself: What did Angie find?
Answer: matches. So, matches is the direct
object because it is receiving the action of
“found,” a verb.
• Ask yourself: What did Angie start?
Answer: bonfire. So, bonfire is also a direct
object because it is receiving the action of
“started,” a verb.
Another Kind of Object:
Indirect Object
• The indirect object is not directly receiving the
action of the verb.
• An indirect object cannot exist without a
direct object!
You need a direct object to have an
indirect object. An indirect object is
really an “understood” prepositional
phrase.
Alex threw David the flowers.
• Flowers is the direct object, and David
is the indirect object.
• Ask yourself:
“What did the subject throw?”
Answer: flowers –the direct object
• Ask yourself,
“To whom did the subject throw the flowers?”
Answer: to David—the indirect object
Explanation: The answer is “to David,” because
this is an understood prepositional phrase;
the word “to” is not in the sentence.
Remember, an indirect object is really an
understood prepositional phrase. It names the
person (or thing) to whom (or to what) or for
whom (or for what) something is done.
However: When the word naming the indirect
receiver of the action is contained in a
prepositional phrase, it is no longer considered
an indirect object.
Jason gave her a diamond.
• Ask yourself: Jason gave what?
Answer: a diamond. Therefore, diamond
is receiving the action of being given
and is the direct object.
• Ask yourself, “To whom or what was
the diamond given?”
Answer: to her. Her is the indirect object.
Jason put on an expensive coat for her.
• Ask yourself, “Put what?”
• Answer: There is no direct or indirect
object here because of the way the
sentence is written. The word “on” is not a
direct object or an indirect object because
it isn’t a noun or pronoun.
• Sorry, but it gets tricky some times.