Indirect pronouns in Italian take the place of a noun used as a direct object, preceded by the preposition “a“. Indirect pronouns must agree in gender and number with the noun they replace. Indirect pronouns in Italian, like direct pronouns, are used before the verb.
We have already seen these pronouns used with verbs like (Piacere, Bastare, Mancare, and Servire).
These are the forms of indirect pronouns in Italian:
| Personal pronouns | Indirect pronouns |
| Io | Mi (a me) [Me (to me)] |
| Tu | Ti (a te) [You (to you)] |
| Lui/lei | Gli /le (a lui/ a lei) [Him/her (to him/to her)] |
| Noi | Ci (a noi) [We (to us)] |
| Voi | Vi (a voi) [You (to you)] |
| Loro | Gli (a loro) [Them (to them)] |
- Quando vedo Lino gli rendo il libro.
- (When I see Lino I give him the book.)
- È il compleanno di Piera e la regalo dei Fiori.
- (It’s Piera’s birthday and I gifted him flowers.)
- Sono uscito con gli amici e gli ho offerto una cena.
- (I went out with friends and bought them dinner.)
For the third person plural, in addition to (Gli), there is also the form (Loro) which, however, is used only after the verb and is less frequent and more formal.
- Mi fai un caffè?
- (Can you make me a coffee?)
- Ti offro una pizza. (I offer you a pizza.)
- Claudio ha dei gusti strani: non gli piacciono i gelati.
- (Claudio has strange tastes: he doesn’t like ice cream.)
- Livia ha quasi finito l’università: le manca un solo sesame.
- (Livia has almost finished university: she only needs one exam.)
- Ci presenti la tua ragazza?
- (Will you introduce your girlfriend?)
- Vi serve qualcosa? (Do you need anything?)
- Laura e Dino si sposano: cosa gli regaliamo?
- (Laura and Dino get married: what do we give them?)
- Laura e Dino si sposano: cosa regaliamo loro?
- (Laura and Dino get married: what do we give them?)
As we have said, direct pronouns agree in gender and number with the nouns they replace:
| Gli | Masculine singular |
| Le | Feminine singular |
| Gli/Loro | Masculine and feminine plural |
- Non voglio vedere Marco: gli devo dei soldi.
- (I don’t want to see Marco: I owe him some money.)
- Se vai dalla professoressa, le porti questo libro, per favore?
- (If You go to the teacher, will you bring this book, please?)
- Paolo e Luigi vanno in centro: gli dai un passaggio?
- (Paolo and Luigi go downtown: Can you give them a lift?)
- Quando vedrò Anna e Luisa gli parlerò, sono sicura che capiranno quando spiegherò loro la situazione.
- (When I see Anna and Luisa I will talk to them, I’m sure they will understand when I explain the situation to them.)
When indirect pronouns are used together with verbs that take another verb in the infinitive after it (usually Dovere, Potere, Volere, and Sapere), they can be attached to the infinitive verb (which loses the final vowel).
[(verb + infinitive) + pronoun] or [pronoun + (verb + infinitive)]
The meaning of the sentence does not change if the pronoun is placed before the verb or joined to the infinitive:
- Volete parlargli? = Gli volete parlare?
- (Do you want to talk to him/them?)
- Posso offrirti qualcosa? = Ti posso offrire qualcosa?
- (Can I offer you something?)
- Dobbiamo telefonarle = Le dobbiamo telefonare.
- (We have to call her.)
- Sai dirmi dove abitano? = Mi sai dire dove abitano?
- (Can you tell me where they live?)
Indirect pronouns do not join the infinitive if it comes after the verbs [fare (to do) and lasciare (to leave, to let)]
- Perchè non gli lasciate guardare la television?
- (Why don’t you let him watch television?)
- Vengono i bambini: Cosa gli farò fare?
- (The children are coming: What will I make them do?)
The past participle of perfect tenses does not have to agree with the indirect pronouns:
- Le hanno regalato un soggiorno di 3 giorni a Pisa.
- (They gave her a 3-day stay in Pisa.)
- Gli abbiamo già telefonato.
- (We have already phoned him.)
- Non ci hanno detto nulla.
- (They didn’t tell us anything.)
- Vi ho mandato una cartolina da Budapest.
- (I sent you a postcard from Budapest.)
The form of courtesy with the indirect pronouns in Italian:
For the form of courtesy in the singular, the feminine pronoun Le is used, as always, for both the masculine and feminine. For the plural we usually use Vi, but we can also use Loro (after the verb) which is more formal.
- Avvocato, Le posso parlare ora?
- (Lawyer, can I talk to you now?)
- Dottoressa, Le telefono senz’altro domani.
- (Doctor, I’ll definitely call you tomorrow.)
- Signori, Vi ho prenotato una stanza con il balcone.
- (Gentlemen, I have booked you a room with a balcony.)
- Signori, ho prenotato loro una stanza con il balcone.
- (Gentlemen, I have booked them a room with a balcony.)
The negative form of the indirect pronouns in Italian
The negative form is done by putting (non) in front of the pronoun:
- Perchè non gli dici nulla?
- (Why don’t you tell him anything?)
- Stiamo benissimo qui e non ci manca nulla.
- (We are fine here and we lack nothing.)
- Non le piace il vino rosso, Signora?
- (Don’t you like red wine, Madam?)
The tonic form of the indirect pronouns in Italian
When we want to emphasize the pronoun or underline a contrast, we use the tonic forms of the indirect pronouns:
| Personal pronoun | Tonic form of indirect pronouns |
| Io | a me (to me) |
| Tu | a te (to you) |
| Lui/lei | a lui / a lei (to him/ to her) |
| Noi | a noi (to us) |
| Voi | a voi (to you) |
| Loro | a loro (to them) |
The tonic forms are preceded by the preposition “a” and usually follow the verb (this does not happen with the verb Paicere)
- Offri la cena a me e a lei?
- (Are you offering dinner for me and her?)
- Telefono a voi, ma non a loro.
- (I call you, but not them.)
- Devi dire tutto a lui, non a me.
- (You have to tell him everything, not me.)
- A noi piace leggere, a voi non piace?
- (We like to read, don’t you like it?)
Tonic forms of the indirect pronouns in Italian are also used, after all, other prepositions, and after these words:
- Anche(pure) (also /as well/ too)
- Neanche(nemmeno,neppure) (not even)
- Meno (eccetto, salvo, tranne) (less / except)
- Come (as)
- Quanto (as)
- Esci con me stasera?
- (Are you going out with me tonight?)
- L’ho fatto per voi! (I did it for you!)
- I Signori Guasti abitano sotto di noi.
- (Mr and Miss Guasti live below us.)
- Stasera ci troviamo tutti da te.
- (We are all at your place tonight.)
- Avete offerto la cena anche a lui?
- (Did you offer him dinner too?)
- Ha scritto a tutti, tranne che a me.
- (He wrote to everyone except me.)
- Dispiace a me quanto a te. (I’m as sorry as you are.)
- Ha parlato a Piero come te. (He spoke to Piero like you.)