UNIT 5: THE NOUN PHRASE

Direct object: the NP that receives the verbal action. If this is so,
what about the following sentences:

1. FUNCTIONS OF THE NP:

NPs display 5 main roles in the syntax both of English and Spanish:
S (1); Od, (2); Oi (3); Cs or Co, (4), and Object of preposition, (5):
(1a) El caballo comenz a corer.
(1b) The horse started to run.
(2a) Ayer vimos el caballo.
(2b) We saw the horse yesterday.

(5) Jorge oye a Plcido Domingo.

(6) John admires CR7.
Syntactic approach:
The subject precedes the verb and the direct object follows it.
The subject is the NP a verb must have while the direct object is
optional.
The subject is the NP the verb agrees with.

(3a) Le di heno al caballo

(3b) I gave the horse some hay.

Of these, only the third property is reliable, but entirely circular. The
other two work fairly well in English but not so in Spanish, where
word order is relatively free:

(4a) EL animal ms bello del mundo es el caballo.

(4b) The most beautiful animal of the world is the horse.

(7) A Sergio lo odian todos sus vecinos.

(8) En mi casa vivimos cinco personas.

(5a) Pasaron por detrs del caballo.

(5b) They passed behind the horse.

As regards optionality, English permits the omission of some direct

objects but never that of the subject; Spanish, on the contrary,
requires neither of them:

1.1. Subjects and direct objects:

Traditional approach (semantically rooted):
Subject: the doer or agent of the event; that is, the entity that acts
upon the verb and carries out the event. If this is so, what happens
with the following examples?:
(1) Mara padece una enfermedad grave.
(2) Mara se parece a su padre.
(3) Mary saw the signal.
(4) Mary received two letters yesterday.

(9a) John ate the custard apple.

(9b) John ate.
(9c) *Ate
(9d) *Ate the custard apple.
(10a) Juan comi el flan.
(10b) Juan comi.
(10c) Comi.
(10d) Comi el flan.

The omisin of direct objects is posible in both languages Ander

certain semantic conditions: they refer to generis, indefinite
arguments which are, as a consequence, irrelevant from a pragmatic
point of view (they are in some sense implied in the meaning of the
verb).

1.2. Indirect object or involved entity:

The indirect object in English is any entity to which or for which the
subject verbs the direct object. This entity does not need to be a
person or even animate:
(1a) I gave my
flowers/linguistics.

fullest

attention

to

John/the

puppy/the

(4a) Le di la cerveza a Juan.

(4b) *Le di Juan la cerveza.
But the main difference in the the indirect object is used with a much
broader meaning in Spanish, not being restricted just to giving-to or
doing-for. It represents a generalized interest in, participation in, or
effect from the subject + verb (direct object) event or relationship. So
it has to be considered an involved entity:
(5a) Elena le mand una carta a Juan.
(5b) Elena le prepar/cocin la comida a Juan.
(5c) Elena le quit la llave a Juan.
(5d) Elena le puso/ech otra sbana a Juan.
(5e) Elena le not cierta tristeza a Juan.
(5f) Elena le lav el pelo a Juan.

A grammatical test is the deletion of to/for, with the subsequent

switch between direct and indirect objecty:

Apart from this problem, Spanish indirect objects are quite frequently
ambiguous:

(1b) I gave John/the puppy/the flowers/linguistics my fullest attention.

(6) Elena le compr la moto a Juan.

(6a) Juan is the seller.
(6b) Juan is not the seller, but the person who finally gets the
motorbike.

This test is very useful because it differentiates real indirect objects

from other constituents that have an identical structure:
(2a) I mailed the letter to Africa.
(2b) *I mailed Africa the letter.
(3a) I mailed the letter to Alfred.
(3b) I mailed Alfred the letter.
English criteria again fail in Spanish. A accompanies many direct
object noun phrases and all indirect object noun phrases, so the
presence of a to in front of NPs does not uniquely signal indirect
object in Spanish. Also, there is no indirect object-direct object
inversion rule:

1.3. Syntactic and semantic impersonality

Sentences are considered to be impersonal from a semantic point of
view when they do not have an agent for the verbal action. On the
other hand, they are impersonal from a syntactic point of view when
they lack a subject:
(1) Pronto se conocern las noticias. (Semantically impersonal)
(2) Se vive bien en Espaa. (Syntactically and semantically
impersonal)

(3) En este mundo, si no lloras, no mamas. (Semantically impersonal,

because the subject is generic with no specific agentive reference)
2. THE STRUCTURE OF THE NP:
There are two different types of NPs in English and Spanish: (i)
nominal or lexical NPs (those built around a head noun); (ii) nounless
NPs (those built around any other constituent different from a noun).
2.1. Nominal NPs:
2.1.1. The noun (head):
English nouns are inflected for number (boy/boys) and case (boys);
Spanish nouns, in turn, are inflected for number (nio/nios) and
gender (nio/nia).
2.2.2. Determiners:
2.2.2.1. Articles:
They differ in some ways, though not in their basic functions, which
are two: (i) the indefinite article introduces a singular count noun into
discourse for the first time and the definite article is used, in turn,
when
the reference of the noun introduced into discourse is known both to
the speaker and to the hearer:
(1a) I saw a dog outside. El perro estaba ladrando.
(1b) Vi un perro afuera. The dog was barking.
(ii) Both, the definite and indefinite articles indicate generic reference
(all members of a group in general):

(2b) Un gato tiene cuatro patas.

(3a) The cat has tour legs,
(3b) El gato tiene tiene cuatro patas.

THE DEFINITE ARTICLE:

Form:
Spanish has four different definite articles (el/la/los/las) which must
agree in gender and number with the head nouns they are presenting;
Spanish feminine singular nouns beginning with an stressed [a] is
what would appear to be the masculine singular el. This is called the
transvestite gender: el agua/las aguas, el aula/las aulas, etc.
enderunthat can substitute for a noun SNo
English, in turn, has only written form of the definite article, the,
without any distinction for gender or number. However, it has two
different pronunciations: [], used before word beginning with a
consonant sound, and [], used, in turn, before words beginning with
a wowel.
Contexts in which the English and Spanish definite article function
alike:
a) Known reference:
(3a) La ciudad est triste.

(3b) The city is sad.

b) With elements of nature that are unique (indexical use of the

article):
(4a) El cielo es azul.
(4b) The sky is blue.
c) With animals, plants or individuals spoken of in the singular as
representatives of their own species, sex, religion, race or nationality:
(5a) El zorro es muy astuto.
(5b) The fox is very cunning.

(2a) A cat has four legs.

d) With organs of the body in a generic sense:

(6a) La mano tiene 5 dedos.
(6b) The hand has five fingers.
e) With nouns restricted by modifying or defining words:
(7a) La flor the papel.
(7b) The paper flower.
f) With epithets; that is, words used to characterize famous people:
(8a) Juana la loca.
(8b) Joanna the Mad.
g) With geographic accidents, especially with names of rives, oceans,
and oceans:
(9a)Est en el Atlntico.
(9b) It is in the Atlantic.
h) With surnames to refer to a whole family:
(10a) Los Brown viven ah.
(10b) The Browns live there.
i) With the expression of exact dates, provided English uses the
construction the + date + of + month:
(11a) Vino el 20 de abril.
(11b) He came on the 20th of
April.
Different uses of the English and Spanish definite article:
a) With nouns spoken in a general sense:
(12a) El griego es difcil.
(12b) Greek is difficult.
b) With days of the week (on is used in English) and in the
expression of exact dates, provided that English uses the construction
on + month + dates:
(13a) LLeg el lunes.
(13b) He came on Monday.
(14a) Vino el 10 de mayo.
(14b) He came on May 10th.
If the date is somehow modifies, both languages make use of the
definite article:
(15a) Lo terminarn el ultimo lunes del mes.

(15b) They Hill finish it (on) the last Monday of the month.
c) With the time of the day:
(16a) Son las 12.00.

(16b) Its 12.00.

d) With en/at or a/to + a frequented place or event. Spanish uses the

article much more than English does because in English the article is
not used when the place, usually a public institution, is part of the
speakers daily life:
(17a) Estoy en el colegio.
(18a) Est en la crcel.
visit)

(17b) Im at school.
(18b) He is in the prison (paying a

Neither language uses the definite article in the following cases: estar
en clase/to be in class, estar en casa/to be at home and ir a misa/go
to mass.
e) Before the name of a country or continent if its somehow modified:
(19a) La Europa clsica.
(19b) Classical Europe.
f) With classified nouns in indirect address. A classified noun is that
one that bears a title or is somehow modified; and indirect address
means that the noun is being spoken about rather than being directly
spoken to:
(20a) Dnde est el Sr. Gmez?
(20b) Where is Mr.
Gmez?
Nevertheless, the omission of the definite article is also compulsory
in Spanish when addressing someone directly; that is, in vocatives.
(21a) Dr. Martn, qu quiere? (21b) Dr. Martin, what do you want?
g) When talking about parts of the city. Streets, avenues, squares, etc.:
(22a) Vivo en la calle Puerto. (22b) I live in Puerto Street.

h) With nouns used in apposition to a personal pronoun:

(23a) Ustedes los rebeldes.
(23b) You rebels.

(30a) Mi padre es capitn.

(31a) Pedro es mexicano.

i) With parts of the body or articles of clothing, where English uses

possessive determiners:
(24a) Baj la cabeza.
(24b) He bowed his head.
(25a) Me puse el vestido.
(25b) I put on my dress.

However, when the predicate noun of profession or adjective of

nationality is in any sense modified, both languages make use of the
indefinite article:
(32a) Mara es una buena periodista.
(32b) Mary is a good journalist.
(33a) Es una mexicana curiosa.
(33b) She is a curious Mexican.

When parts of the body or items of clothing are referred to, Spanish
uses the singular form since Spanish focuses on the individuality;
English, in turn, focuses on the collectivity and, hence, uses the noun
in the plural number:
(26a) Se quitaron el sombrero.
(26b) They took off their
hats.
(27) *Bajaron las cabezas.
(28) *They bowed their head.
THE INDEFINITE ARTICLE:
Form: Spanish has four different forms (uno/una/unos/unas) that
agree in gender and noun with the noun they introduce into discourse;
English, in turn, has two allomorphs of its definite singular indefinite
article: a, used before beginning with a consonant, and an, used
before words beginning with a vowel. The English plural indefinite
article, some, in no way resembles the singular form an is frequently
omitted:
(29a) I have a book.

(29b) I have some books.

Different uses of the English and Spanish definite article:

a) With an unmodified singular predicate noun indicating profession
or with a singular predicate adjective of nationality, Spanish does not
normally use the indefinite article, where English does:

(30b) Mi father is a captain.

(31b) Peter is a Mexican.

Contexts in which the English and Spanish indefinite article

function alike:
a) When the predicate noun of profession or adjective of nationality
assumes plural number, however, neither language uses the indefinite
article:
(34a) Ellos son dominicanos. (34b) They are Dominicans.
(35a) Son mdicos.
(35b) They are doctors
But in Spanish the indefinite article must be used, if the plural noun
or adjective is modified in some way:
(36a) Son unos espaoles ricos.
(36b)
They
are
rich
Spaniards.
DEMONSTRATIVES:
They indicate relative proximity of persons or things from the
speaker, either in space or time.
English demonstratives can be divided in two separate groups:
those that imply proximity to the speaker (this/these) and those that
indicate distance distance from the speaker (that/those).

 In Spanish, however, there are three different sets, whose members

are doubled marked since they have gender and number inflection: (i)
those that indicate proximity to the speaker (este/-a/-os/-as); (ii)
those that indicate some distance (ese/-a/-os/-as) or remote distance
(aquel/-la/-los/-las) from the speaker. The queivalents of this final set
in English are that/those + some additional words indicating distance.
POSSESSIVE DETERMINERS AND OTHER TYPES OF NOUN-TO-NOUN
RELATIONSHIPS:
English have two different means of expressing possession inside a
NP: (i) with a possessive NP inside the determiner position, (1); (ii)
with a posposed NP introduced by of in the PP slot, (2):
(1) The companys stock.
(2) The stocks of the company.
Spanish, in turn, has the former option only in the case of
possessive determiners, where, again, it differes from English a great
deal. English only has one set of possessive determiners
(my/your/his/her/its/our/your/ their) and Spanish has two different
sets:
(i)
unstressed
possessive
determiners
(mi/tu/su/nuestro/vuestro/su); (ii) and the stressed ones
(mo/tuyo/suyo/nuestro/vuestro/suyo). Both Spanish sets show, when
possible number and gender agreement, but their position is different:
the unstressed group always precedes the noun (Mi casa), whereas
the streesed class, used to emphasize possession, always follows the
noun and requires the support of some other determiners, usually the
articles, to introduce the noun into discourse (La casa ma):
(3a) I will bring your book tomorrow.
(3b) Traer tu libro maana.
(3c) Traer el libro tuyo maana.

In Spanish the possessive determiner, unstressed or stressed, agrees

with the noun possessed rather than with the possessor, as it happens
in English. Hence, the problems of students when learning English or
Spanish as a second language:
(4a) Su casa/*Su casas for his/her/your house(s).
(4b) *Sus casa/sus casas for their/your house(s).
(5a) Her bed/bike instead of his bed/bike for su cama/bici (de l).
(5b) His father/brother instead of her father/brother for su padre/
hermano (de ella).
When the possessor is a noun or a nominal NP instead of a pronoun,
Spanish requires it to be placed in the PP slot (6a-6b), although this
pattern is also allowed in Spanish, contrary to English, with
pronominal possessors, (7a-7b):
(6a) Las acciones de la compaa.
(6b) *La compaas acciones.
(7a) Las acciones de l.
(7b) *The stocks of him.
Summary: in English a possessive NP can occur as either a
determiner or prepositional phrase but a pronominal one occurs just
as determiner; in Spanish, on the other hand, a possessive nominal
NP occurs just as a PP but a pronominal one can occur either as
determiner or as a prepositional phrase.
It should be taken into account that postnominal PPs with of and de
do not indicate possession alone. Anyway, whereas Spanish tends to
use de to establish any nominal relationship, English makes use of
more specific prepositions:
(8a) La nia de los ojos verdes. (8b) The girl with green eyes.
(9a) La mujer de Dinamarca. (9b) The woman from Denmark.

(10a) La estatua del parquet.

(10b) The statue in the park.

For locative relationships with some other prepositions, Spanish

adopts a relative clause, which is also an alternative in English:
(11a) The girl (whos) at the door.
(11b) La nia que est en la puerta.
A major source of interference are English compounds of the type
N2N1 which are encoded in Spanish as nonpossessive N1 of N2
relationships:
(12a) A gold watch
(13a) A brick house

(12b) Un reloj de oro

(13b) Una casa de ladrillo

In Spanish there are some compounds which, however, have a

different internal organization from their English counterparts since
in them the modifier is the second noun, and not the first one as in
English:
(14a) Esposa modelo.
(15a) Caso lmite.
(16a) Lengua madre.

(14b) Model wife.

(15b) Borderline case.
(16b) Mother tongue.

QUANTIFIERS:
Althogh both languages employ the count/non-count classificatory
system, all nouns are not classified the same in each language.
Furniture, for instance, is a mass term in English, and its counterpart
mueble(s) is a count noun in Spanish.
Partitive systems for English and Spanish count nouns:
Small degree: a few/few; unos cuantos/pocos;
Medium degree: some; algunos/unos;

Large degree: a lot of/lots of/many; muchos;

Partitive systems for English and Spanish non-count nouns:
Small degree: a little/little; un poco de;
Medium degree: some; algo de;
Large degree: a lot of/lots of/much; mucho;
Contrary to English, in Spanish the partitive determiners show
gender agreement with the noun they introduce into discourse.
2.2.2.2. Adjectives:
English adjectives have only one form, unless inflected for the
comparative and superlative degrees, since it is never marked for
gender or number.
In Spanish, however, depending on the form they have, adjectives
are subject to a three-fold classification:
a) Class I: these adjectives have a dictionary masculine singular form
ending in -o. They always have at least four different forms marked
for gender and number: sano/-a/-os/-as; cmodo/-a/os/-as. Some
adjectives of this class, generally limiting adjectives, drop their final
o and assume apocopated forms when preceding a masculine
singular noun: primer/-o/-a/-os/-as; buen/-o/-a/-os/-as.
b) Class II: they have a dictionary masculine singular form ending in
something other than -o, with the exclusion of the endings of class III
adjectives. They have only two forms, since they are only marked for
number: gris/es; genial/es;
c) Class III: they finish in n, -n, -n and or, with the exception of
the comparatives peor and mejor, and all the adjectives of nationality
whose masculine singular form ends in something other than -o.

They always have four different forms marked for gender and
number: espaol/-a/-es/-as; dulzn/-a/es/-as; Labrador/-a/-es/-as.
In English the adjective precedes the noun it modifies almost
without exception:
(1) The first man arrived in a black car.
(2) We live in a small house next to the American River.
Some exception to this rule are French borrowings belonging to the
semantic field of law like, for example, court martial, attorney
general and notary public.
There are cases, however, in which the adjective in English can be
movable and can appear either in its usual position or after the noun.
Postpositive adjectives give a new sense to the noun they are
following since they are not describing the noun, but limiting its
quality. The great majority of postpositive adjectives belong to the
class of past participles:
(3a) The visible stars. (We refer to the whole group of stars)
(3b) The stars visible. (The number of stars is here restricted; we are
only referring to the group of stars that are visible, and not to all of
them).
Spanish adjectives, however, can either precede (limiting
adjectives) or follow (descriptive adjectives) the noun they modify
according to the classification they have.
Limiting adjectives in Spanish relate the noun to its environment,
describes its order in a succession or state its relative amount or
quantity. They include the articles, the short unstressed forms of the
possessive determiners, the demonstratives, numerals, adjectives of
quantity and indefinites:

(4) No me gusta el gobierno.

(5) Dnde vas a colocar tu abrigo?
(6) Vamos a aadir dos ejemplos ms.
(7) Habl con toda la tranquilidad.
Descriptive adjectives differentiate (from pure classification to
contrast) the nouns they introduce into discourse from other nouns.
Contrary to limiting adjectives, they do say something about the
nature of the nouns they modify:
(8) Es un escritor alemn.
(9) Fue un presidente catlico.
(10) Es un prncipe pobre (y no rico).
(11) Fue un proceso complicado (y no sencillo).
Nevertheless, although Spanish descriptive adjectives generally
follow the noun, they may occur before it. Their position dependsm
on the principle of relative informativeness: Sebastin no es un
amigo leal (about loyalty) vs. Sebastin no es un leal amigo (about
friendship). Because of this, when desriptive adjectives precede their
nouns, they enhance the nouns or offer a personal estimation or value
judgement concerning it:
(12a) Est adquiriendo muy buen gusto.
(12b) Gana un sueldo bueno.
(13a) Nunca ms volver a esta bendita casa.
(13b) Agua bendita.
When this is so, English must often use two different adjectives:
Translate:
(14a) Haba diferentes clases de plantas.
(14b) Haba clases diferentes de plantas.

(15a) Compr un nuevo coche.

(15b) Compr un coche nuevo.

Plural indefinite referent: some/unos/algunos for the affirmative and

none/ninguno for thr negative

(16a) Es un pobre hombre.

(16b) Es un hombre pobre.

(5) I have some brothers. I have some.

(6) Tengo unos/algunos hermanos. Tengo unos/algunos
(7) I have no brothers. *I have no. I have none.
(8) No tengo ningn hermano. *No tengo ningn. No tengo
ninguno.

(17a) Tengo mi propio plan.

(17b) Tengo mi plan propio.
(18a) Es un simple soldado.
(18b) Es un soldado simple.
But in some occasions, instead of two different adjectives, the same
adjective is used in English though either in attributive (nominal
premodifier) or predicative (after linking verb) position:
(19a) Bebe pura agua. He drinks pure water.
(19b) Bebe agua pura. The water he drinks is pure.

2.2. Nounless NPs

2.2.1. NOMINALIZATION:
2.2.1.1. Article nominalization: it becomes a case of
pronominalization
(1) I fixed the washer. *I fixed the. I fixed it.
(2) Arregl la lavadora. *Arregl la. La arregl.
Singular indefinite referent: one/uno
(3) I fixed an engine. *I fixed a. I fixed one.
(4) Arregl un motor. *Arregl un. Arregl uno.

2.2.1.2. Demonstrative nominalization: it also turns into

pronominalization: In Sp. you have simply to omit the noun. The
same happens in Eng. if the noun is plural, but if the noun is singular,
it has to be replaced by one:
(9) Esta herramienta. Esta.
(10) Ese coche. Ese.
(11) Aquellos nios. Aquellos.
(12) This book. This one.
(13) Those boxes. Those (ones)
(14) He drives very fast and that is very dangerous.
(15) Conduce muy rpido y eso es muy peligroso.
2.2.1.3. Possessive nominalization
(16) My house cost me a lot. Mine cost me a lot.
(17) Mi casa me cost mucho. La ma me cost mucho.
(18) Johns house is white. Johns is white.
(19) La casa de Juan es blanca. LA de Juan es blanca.
(20) The stocks of the company. *The of the company.The
ones/those of the company.
(21)Las acciones de la compaa. Las de la compaa.
2.2.1.4. Adjective nominalization

(22) Me atrevo a apoyar una causa diferente. Me atrevo a

apoyar una diferente.
(23) Hay que conservar los logros grandes. Hay que conservar los
grandes.
(24) A blonde girl has just arrived. A blonde has just arrived.
(25) He feels we should tax the rich people. He feels we should tax
the rich.
(26) Los ricos. The rich (ones).
(27) La vieja. The old one
(28) Unos (libros) ms grandes. Some larger ones.
(29) Diez (hombres) pobres. Ten poor ones.
2.2.1.5. Zero determiner:
(30) Venden ustedes libros? No, no vendemos.
(31) Do you sell books? *No, we dont sell. No, we dont sell
any/them/those.
(32) Tienes azcar? S, s tengo.
(33) Do you have sugar? *Yes, I have. Yes, I have it/some/that.
2.2.1.6. The Spanish Neuter lo:
a) lo + adjectives/adverbs: how/adjective/Adverb.
(34) No sabe lo claro que es. You dont know how clear it is.
(35) Veo lo rpido que conduce. I see how fast he drives.

(37) No veo lo til del mtodo. I dont see the usefulness of the
method.
c) lo + PP headed by of: definite article/demonstrative + general noun
(business(stuff) + about PP:
(38) Lo de Pedro no me importa. I dont care about that staff about
Meter.
(39) Lo de tu hijo me preocupa. The business about your son
worries me.
d) lo + relative pronoun: what + clause
(40) Me dijo lo que necesitaba He told me what he needed.

2.2.2. THE ENGLISH AND SPANISH PRONOMINAL SYSTEMS: FUNCTION

AND USE
2.2.2.1. Prepositional object pronouns:
They can be reflexive or nonreflexive:
(1) This is for me.
(2) Esto es para mi.
If reflexive, the words mismo/-a/-os/-as generally accompany the
pronouns:

b) lo + adjective complementes by a PP headed by de:

(i) definite article + adjective + noun (aspect/thing/part):
(36) Eso es lo bonito de la vida: that is the pretty aspect of life.
(ii) definite article + noun derived from the adjective at issue + of
phrase:

(3) I did it for myself.

(4) Lo hice para m mismo.
Not every Spanish preposition governs the Spanish prepositional
object pronouns: entre, menos and excepto take the subject pronouns
as their complements:
(5) Entre t y yo, no debe haber problemas.

10

(6) Todos quieren ir, menos/excepto yo.

Something similar happens in English with but, the only difference
being that it can be followd by both pronominal forms: the objective
and the subjective:
(7) Everybody but him/he can do it.
2.2.2.2. Spanish conjunctive pronouns: their position and their
equivalence in English:
The conjunctive pronouns are those that accompany the verb either
by preceding it or being attached to it; that is, the object pronouns
and teh reflexive ones. On the other hand, the pronouns that are
separated in the sentence from the verb, such as the subject pronouns
and the prepositional object pronouns, are called disjunctive
pronouns.
There are four different positions for the Spanish conjunctive
pronouns with respect to the verb:
a) before the verb if it is a conjugated verbal form or a negative
command:
(8) Juan me ve todos los das. John sees me every day.
(9) No le digas eso. Dont say that to him.
b) attached to the verb if it is an affirmative command:
(10) Treme el libro. Bring me the book.
c) either before the entire verbal unit or attached to the last element
of the evrbal unit if the last element in the verbal unit is or a
dependent infinitive or a dependent gerund:
(11) Me quiere besar/Quiere besarme. He wants to kiss me.

(12) Le estoy diciendo la verdad/Estoy dicindole la verdad. I am

telling him the truth.
d) attached to the verbal form, if it is a non dependent gerund or
infinitivo:
(13) Ver la tele me aburre. To watch T.V.bores me a lot.
(14) Dicindole la verdad, lo convencers. Telling him the truth,
youll convince him.
As can be seen from the English tranlations, the English equivalents
for the Spanish conjunctive pronouns always assume a postverbal
position.
2.2.2.3 Spanish (In)direct object pronouns and their English
equivalents:
Loismo (Latin America): it consists of using le(s) for the indirect
object function and lo(s)/la(s) for the direct object function.
Leismo (Spanin): it consists of using le(s) for the indirect object
function and for masculine animate direct objects; lo(s) for masculine
inanimate direct objects and la(s) for feminine direct objects.
Direct object pronouns are used in conjunction with direct object
nouns, when these salt ones precede the verb in the sentence:
(15) Veo a Julia.
(16) A Julia la veo.
(17) No conozco a tus padres.
(18) A tus padres no los/les conozco.
Indirect object pronouns, however, always tend to be used in
conjunction with indirect object nouns, no matter their position:
(19) No le vas a entregar el libro a Juan?

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(20) A mi madre mi padre siempre le dice la verdad.

2.3. REFLEXIVITY AND RECIPROCITY:

2.2.2.4. Both direct and indirect object pronouns in the same

sentence:

The true reflexive pronoun is that one that refers back to the clausal
subject. Both, in English and Spanish, refrlexive sentences sharphly
contrast with non-reflexive sentences:

In Sp., without exception, the indirect object pronoun precedes the

direct object pronoun, and both together form a unit as regards the
position they should occupy in the sentence. It has to be taken into
account at this point that the third person indirect object pronoun
(le/les) has to be changed to se, due to phonological reasons,when
preceding a third person direct object pronoun (lo/le/la/les/los/las):

(25a) Ella se vio en el espejo. (25b) Ella lo vio en el espejo.

(26a) The manager shot himself.
(26b) The manager shot him.

(21) *Miguel le lo dio. Miguel se lo dio.

(22) *Dleslos, Dselos.
In English there are two posible structures: (a) V + IO +DO, (b) V
+DO + to/for + IO:

(27a) El se acuesta

(23a) Give me some money.

(23b) Give some money to me.

English clearly prefers the (a) pattern when the DO is expressed as a

noun: He gave me the book; pattern (b), however, is preferred when
both the OD and the IO are expressed as pronouns: He gave some to
me.It has to be noted, here, furthermore, that two personal pronouns
cannot assume the postions in pattern (a) withouth causing
ungrammaticality: *He gave me it.
Although most English ditransitive verbs allow both structures, there
are some like apply, describe, explain, introduce, mention, present,
return, suggest, and some others, that only favour pattern (b):
(24a) *He explained me the lesson.
lesson to me.

(24b)

He

explained

the

The two languages correspond quite well here, but not so well when
selecting vocabulary items to express ideas that are clearly reflexive
in both languages:
(27b) He goes to bed. *He beds himself.

The two languages also diverge when enconding inherent reflexivity

(inherently reflexive actions). In these cases, the reflexive pronoun
can be omitted in English, but never in Spanish:
(28a) John washed (himself)
(28b) Juan se lav.
(28c) Juan lav.
English, thus, contrasts SV (She washed) with SVO (She washed
him), whereas Spanish contrasts a reflexive SVO parttern (Se lav)
with a non-reflexive SVO pattern (Lo lav).
Since the notion of IO is broader in Spanish than in English, in
Spanish an IO can also be a reflexive pronoun. Since this is not
possible in English, the equivalent is to be found in a transitive
pattern whose direct object has the following structure: det + own +
noun:
(29a)Mara se lav la cara.

(29b) Mary washed her (own) face.

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A criterion to prove true reflexivity in Spanish consists of the

insertion in the sentence of a mi/ti/si/ mismo/misma:

If such tags are absent from the construction, it tends to be

ambiguous between a reciprocal and a reflexive reading:

(30) Ella se pein a si misma.

(31) *Ella se atrevi a si misma.

(40) Ellos se vieron.

a) They saw each other (Reciprocal).
b) They saw themselves. (Reflexive).

It has to be pointed here that English reflexive pronouns function,

not6 as traer reflexives, but as intensifiers that give emphasis to the
subject. Hence, it can follow immediately the subject or be placed at
the end of the sentence. In Spanish, in these occasions uses
mismo(misma/mismos/mismas after the subject:
(32) John did it himself. John himseld did it.
(33) Juan mismo lo hizo.
When the referents of a plural subject carry out on each other, and
not upon themselves, the action denoted in the sentence, the action is
said to be a reciprocal one:
(34) Luca y Pepe se miraron.
(35) John and Mary looked at each other.
English uses each other (only for two people) and one another (more
than two people). Spanish, in turn, makes use of the plural reflexive
pronouns:
(36a) They saw one another.
(37a) We greeted each other.

(36b) Ellos se vieron.

(37b) Nos saludamos.

Due to this, Spanish requires clarification of number and gender in a

reciprocal action by tagging the constructions with phrases such as
unos a otros, la una a la otra, etc., etc.:
(38) Los nios se golpearon los unos a los otros.
(39) Nos saludamos la una a la otra.

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