MundoDele Spanish Grammar

Spanish Pronoun Position: Before Verbs, Infinitives and Commands

Learn where Spanish object and reflexive pronouns go in a sentence. This guide explains pronoun position before conjugated verbs, with compound tenses, attached to infinitives and gerunds, and with affirmative and negative commands.

Open position table Practice examples
Core rule: Spanish pronouns go before a conjugated verb but attach to infinitives, gerunds and affirmative commands.
Spanish pronoun position before conjugated verbs and attached to infinitives, gerunds and commands
Pronoun position depends mainly on the verb form and whether a command is affirmative or negative.

Basic placement rule

The core rule: pronouns go before or attach

Spanish object and reflexive pronouns are short grammatical forms that stay closely connected to the verb. Their position depends on whether the verb is conjugated, an infinitive, a gerund or a command.

Before a conjugated verb

Lo veo.
Le escribo.
Me levanto.

Attached to a non-finite form

verlo
escribiéndole
levantarme

Commands

Dímelo.
No me lo digas.

Position table

Spanish pronoun position at a glance

Verb form Pronoun position Spanish example English meaning Main rule
Conjugated verb Before the verb Lo veo. I see it or him. Normal position with one conjugated verb.
Compound tense Before the auxiliary Lo he visto. I have seen it or him. Place the pronoun before haber.
Infinitive Attached or before the conjugated verb Quiero verlo. / Lo quiero ver. I want to see it. Both positions are possible in many verb phrases.
Gerund Attached or before the conjugated verb Estoy viéndolo. / Lo estoy viendo. I am seeing it. The attached form often requires an accent.
Affirmative command Attached Dímelo. Tell it to me. Pronouns attach to the command.
Negative command Before the verb No me lo digas. Do not tell it to me. Pronouns do not attach.
Memory line: before conjugated verbs · attached to infinitives, gerunds and affirmative commands

Conjugated verbs

Pronouns before conjugated verbs

With a simple conjugated verb, the object or reflexive pronoun normally appears immediately before the verb.

Pronoun type Spanish example English meaning Pronoun
Direct object Lo veo. I see it or him. lo
Direct object La conozco. I know her. la
Indirect object Le escribo. I write to him or her. le
Reflexive Me levanto. I get up. me
Two pronouns Me lo dice. He or she tells it to me. me lo
Do not place the pronoun after a normal conjugated verb.

Correct: Lo veo.
Incorrect: Veo lo.

Compound tenses

Pronouns before the auxiliary haber

In compound tenses, the pronoun goes before the conjugated form of haber. It does not appear between the auxiliary and the past participle.

Correct Incorrect English meaning
Lo he visto. He lo visto. I have seen it or him.
La hemos comprado. Hemos la comprado. We have bought it.
Me he levantado. He me levantado. I have gotten up.
Se lo he dicho. He se lo dicho. I have told it to him or her.

Infinitives

Pronouns with Spanish infinitives

Pronouns can attach directly to an infinitive. In many verb phrases, they can alternatively appear before the conjugated verb.

Before the conjugated verb Attached to the infinitive English meaning
Lo quiero ver. Quiero verlo. I want to see it or him.
Le voy a escribir. Voy a escribirle. I am going to write to him or her.
Me quiero levantar. Quiero levantarme. I want to get up.
Se lo voy a dar. Voy a dárselo. I am going to give it to him or her.

Gerunds

Pronouns with Spanish gerunds

A pronoun can attach to a gerund or appear before the conjugated verb. Attached forms often need an accent mark to preserve the original stress.

Before the conjugated verb Attached to the gerund English meaning Accent
Lo estoy viendo. Estoy viéndolo. I am seeing it. viéndolo
Le estoy escribiendo. Estoy escribiéndole. I am writing to him or her. escribiéndole
Me estoy levantando. Estoy levantándome. I am getting up. levantándome
Se lo estoy diciendo. Estoy diciéndoselo. I am telling it to him or her. diciéndoselo

Commands

Pronoun position with affirmative and negative commands

Affirmative commands attach pronouns to the end of the verb. Negative commands place the pronouns before the verb.

Verb and pronouns Affirmative command Negative command English meaning
decir + me + lo Dímelo. No me lo digas. Tell it to me. / Do not tell it to me.
dar + se + lo Dáselo. No se lo des. Give it to him or her. / Do not give it.
levantar + te Levántate. No te levantes. Get up. / Do not get up.
comprar + la Cómprala. No la compres. Buy it. / Do not buy it.
Command rule: affirmative = attached · negative = before the verb

Two pronouns

Position and order with two pronouns

When two pronouns appear together, the indirect-object or reflexive pronoun comes first. The direct-object pronoun comes second.

Indirect + direct

me lo

Me lo explica.

Indirect + direct

te la

Te la compro.

Le or les + direct

se lo

Se lo doy.

Pronoun order Spanish example English meaning
me + lo Me lo dice. He or she tells it to me.
te + la Te la compro. I buy it for you.
nos + los Nos los mandan. They send them to us.
se + las Se las explico. I explain them to him, her or them.

Le and les become se

Why Spanish uses se lo instead of le lo

Spanish changes le and les to se before lo, la, los and las.

Underlying combination Correct form Incorrect form
le + lo Se lo doy. Le lo doy.
le + la Se la mando. Le la mando.
les + los Se los explico. Les los explico.
les + las Se las doy. Les las doy.
This use of se is not reflexive.

It replaces le or les before a third-person direct-object pronoun.

Negation

Pronoun position in negative sentences

In a normal negative sentence, no comes first, followed by the pronoun and then the conjugated verb.

Affirmative Negative Pattern
Lo veo. No lo veo. no + pronoun + verb
Le escribo. No le escribo. Pronoun remains before the verb.
Me levanto. No me levanto. Reflexive pronoun before the verb.
Se lo digo. No se lo digo. The two pronouns remain together.

Written accents

Accent marks with attached pronouns

Attached pronouns can change the written stress pattern. Spanish often adds an accent mark to preserve the original pronunciation.

Base form Attached form English meaning
viendo viéndolo seeing it or him
lavando lavándome washing myself
di dímelo tell it to me
compra cómpralo buy it

Mini practice

Practice Spanish pronoun position

Answer each exercise before opening the solution.

Exercise 1: place the pronoun

  1. Veo el libro.
  2. Escribo a Ana.
  3. Me levanto temprano.
  4. Digo la verdad a Luis.
Show answers

1. Lo veo.
2. Le escribo.
3. Me levanto temprano.
4. Se la digo.

Exercise 2: use the infinitive or gerund

  1. Quiero ver el libro.
  2. Voy a escribir a Ana.
  3. Estoy leyendo la carta.
  4. Estoy explicando la regla a ellos.
Show answers

1. Quiero verlo or Lo quiero ver.
2. Voy a escribirle or Le voy a escribir.
3. Estoy leyéndola or La estoy leyendo.
4. Estoy explicándosela or Se la estoy explicando.

Exercise 3: commands

  1. Decir + me + lo — affirmative
  2. Decir + me + lo — negative
  3. Comprar + la — affirmative
  4. Comprar + la — negative
Show answers

1. Dímelo.
2. No me lo digas.
3. Cómprala.
4. No la compres.

Common errors

Common mistakes with Spanish pronoun position

  • Putting the pronoun after a conjugated verb: say Lo veo, not Veo lo.
  • Putting the pronoun between haber and the participle: say Lo he visto, not He lo visto.
  • Attaching pronouns to negative commands: say No me lo digas, not No dímelo.
  • Forgetting accents: write viéndolo, dímelo and levántate.
  • Using the wrong order: use me lo and te la, not lo me or la te.
  • Using le lo: change le or les to se: se lo.

Frequently asked questions

Questions about Spanish pronoun position

Where do object pronouns go in Spanish?

They normally go before a conjugated verb. They can attach to infinitives, gerunds and affirmative commands.

Can Spanish pronouns attach to infinitives?

Yes. Examples include quiero verlo, voy a escribirle and quiero levantarme.

Can Spanish pronouns attach to gerunds?

Yes. Examples include estoy viéndolo and estoy levantándome. Attached forms often require a written accent.

Where do pronouns go with commands?

They attach to affirmative commands but go before negative commands: dímelo and no me lo digas.

What is the order of two object pronouns?

The indirect-object or reflexive pronoun comes first. The direct-object pronoun comes second: me lo, te la, se los.

Why does le lo become se lo?

Le and les change to se before lo, la, los and las.

Practice and support

Practise Spanish pronoun position in complete sentences

Pronoun placement becomes easier when you practise conjugated verbs, infinitives, gerunds, commands, negation and double-pronoun combinations in context.

Grammar support

Spanish Tutoring

Work on pronouns, sentence correction and individual grammar problems.

Grammar overview

Spanish Grammar

Continue with verbs, tenses, pronouns, prepositions and sentence structures.

Ask about Spanish lessons Back to Spanish pronouns
MundoDele Spanish learning, travel and culture

About MundoDele

Spanish learning connected with culture and real life

MundoDele combines clear Spanish grammar explanations with private lessons, tutoring, DELE and SIELE preparation, Business Spanish, cultural context and travel experiences from the Spanish-speaking world.

The grammar guides use practical examples, connected lessons and clear sentence logic to help international learners move from individual rules to confident Spanish use.

Spanish Grammar Spanish Tutoring Private Lessons Contact MundoDele
Scroll to Top