Notebooks out… Direct Objects Subject + verb +who? or what?= D.O.

Direct objects A noun, pronoun, or word group that tells who or what receives the action of a transitive (action) verb or shows the result of the action. S V D.O. I kicked the ball. Subject + Verb+ who? or what? = direct object. The verb used with a direct object is always an action verb.

A direct object may be compound: Ex: The parrot said “Good Morning” and “Cat free to good home.” [The parrot said what? “Good Morning” and “Cat free to good home.”] A direct object may precede the subject and verb. Ex: What remarkable tricks the illusionist performed! [The illusionist performed what? Tricks.]

Direct objects are NEVER found in prepositional phrases (now do you get why we have to find those first?!) Ex: Tom was driving in his car. [Car is part of the prepositional phrase in his car. The sentence has no D.O.] Tom was driving his car. [Car is the D.O.]

So… Step 1: Locate the prepositional phrases (if there are any). Step 2: Identify the subject and verb. Step 3: Ask yourself: Subject + verb+ who? or what? = D.O. Ex: S V. D.O. I loaded the film (into the camera.) I + loaded what? = film!

Practice: 1. Paul built a doll house for Hayley. 2. The club members held a party in the park. 3. Tiny children prefer short stories. 4. Terri dialed a wrong number in the middle of the night. 5. I focused the camera on a distant object.

Practice: 6. I could read the shutter speed in the viewfinder. 7. Slowly and carefully, I pressed the button. 8. I then advanced the film for the next shot. 9. By the end of the day, I had snapped 36 pictures. 10. Have you ever taken photographs with a 35-mm camera?

Indirect objects are… Nouns, pronouns, or word groups that often appear in sentences containing direct objects. If there is no direct object, there is no indirect object. They tell to whom or to what (or for whom or for what) the action of a transitive verb is done. They generally (not always) come between a verb and a direct object. Examples: Meli read us her report. [Meli read it to whom? Us.]

More Examples They fed the horses some oats. [They fed oats to what? Horses.] Juan left you this message. [Juan left it for whom? You.] Carly knitted her pet dachshund a blanket. [Carly knitted it for what? Dachshund.]

If the word to or for is used, the noun or pronoun following it is part of a prepositional phrase and cannot be an indirect object. Ex: Jeff wrote a note to me. [Me is part of the prepositional phrase to me.] Jeff wrote me a note. [Me is the I.O.] An indirect object may be compound. Ex: I called and left Sarah and Joe a message.

Practice: Identify the D.O. and I.O. in the sentences. Hint: Remember the steps… 1. Leroy told us his plans for the future. 2. He wants a place on the U.S. swim team in the next Olympic games. 3. This goal demands hours of hard practice. 4. Leroy swims 100 laps in the college pool. 5. Intense training could cost him his social life.

6. With his rigorous schedule, Leroy doesn’t have much time to spend with friends. 7. However, we all understand and give him much encouragement and support. 8. We can’t teach him the fine points of competitive swimming. 9. His coach does that. 10. Maybe we’ll see Leroy at the next Olympics.

Practice: Write down the D.O. and I.O. in each sentences. Some sentences will not contain an I.O. 1. Denny brought Tony some apples, bananas, and strawberries from the store. 2. Place the puppy into his pen and come to dinner. 3. Jennifer sent an to her friend in Missouri. 4. The kids played street hockey all afternoon. 5. Thomas got an invitation to visit UCLA during Spring Break. 6. Gary brought a paper to read while he waited for Ann to finish. 7. Justin Timberlake sang his fans' favorite hits. 8. The king gave his most loyal subjects a generous portion of land. 9. The instructor offered her students a lollipop after class. 10. He tied the nets to the goal posts and lined the fields for this season's games. 11. The plumber sent Mom a bill for fixing the sink. 12. Paul bought us tickets for Sunday's game. 13. Grandma read Michael and Mark a story before bed. 14. Orlando wrote a poem and submitted it to the contest. 15. I need more time to finish my project.