Use of Direct Object with the Verb Tener  

Present Indicative Verb Tener - to have

Quick explanation:

Let's take a look at the forms of the verb, "tener" which means "to have".

yo tengo            nosotros tenemos
I have              we have
tú tienes           ellos/ellas tienen
you have            they have 
él/ella tiene
he/she has

We have used "have" to express possession. In our sentences we have used nouns to complete the sentence. We could also use a pronoun to substitute for the noun.

    I have the money.
    I have it.
Long explanation:

There are two words that we use for "it" as a direct object in Spanish. It depends on whether the noun we are replacing is in the "O" category or the "A" category. In addition, we need to notice that we put the word "it" as a direct object in front of the verb in Spanish.

    I have the money (el dinero).
    Yo tengo el dinero. / Yo lo tengo.

    I have the book bag (la mochila).
    Yo tengo la mochila. / Yo la tengo.

If the direct object is plural, we would say "them" in English. In Spanish, again, we would have two forms, depending on the category of the noun that we are replacing.

    I am studying the chapters (los capítulos).
    Yo estudio los capítulos. / Yo los estudio.

    I am studying the pages (las páginas).
    Yo estudio las páginas. / Yo las estudio.

One other thing to notice is that when the sentence is negative, the word "no" will come first before the direct object pronoun.

    I don't have it (the money).
    Yo no lo tengo.

Now, let's practice some sentences.

Yo tengo el dinero.
I have the money.
Yo lo tengo.
I have it.
¿ Tienes el dinero?
Do you have the money?.
¿ Lo tienes?
Do you have it?
María dice que ella tiene el dinero.
Mary says that she has the money.
María dice que ella lo tiene.
Mary says that she has it.
Nosotros tenemos el dinero.
We have the money.
Nosotros no tenemos el dinero.
We don't have the money.
Nosotros no lo tenemos.
We don't have it.
Los muchachos no tienen el dinero.
The boys don't have the money.
Los muchachos no lo tienen.
The boys don't have it.

We know that we can use "have" for possession, but also for "obligation". We can say that someone "has" something, but also we can say that someone "has to do" something. In this case we have to insert the word "que" and follow it with the "R" form of the verb that tells us what someone has to do.

Yo tengo que estudiar.
I have to study.

If we use a pronoun direct object, we will have to put it in front of the entire verb phrase. In Spanish you can never split a verb phrase.

Yo tengo que estudiar el capítulo.
I have to study the chapter.
Yo lo tengo que estudiar.
I have to study it.
Yo tengo que estudiar el capítulo.
I have to study the chapter.
Yo lo tengo que estudiar.
I have to study it.
¿ Tienes que estudiar el capítulo?
Do you have to study the chapter?
¿ Lo tienes que estudiar?
Do you have to study it?
¿ Tienes que estudiar los capítulos?
Do you have to study the chapters?
¿ Los tienes que estudiar?
Do you have to study them?
Juan tiene que estudiar el capitulo.
John has to study the chapter.
Juan lo tiene que estudiar.
John has to study it.
Juan tiene que estudiar los capítulos.
John has to study the chapters.
Juan los tiene que estudiar.
John has to study them.
Los muchachos tienen que estudiar el capítulo.
The boys have to study the chapter.
Los muchachos lo tienen que estudiar.
The boys have to study it.
Los muchachos tienen que estudiar los capítulos.
The boys have to study the chapters.
Los muchachos los tienen que estudiar.
The boys have to study them.
Free charts with Spanish conjugations






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