To describe yourself, your family and your daily routine you need pronouns — the little words that stand in for people and things. This lesson builds them cleanly: subject pronouns, direct and indirect object pronouns, reflexive verbs, plus how to make sentences negative and how to ask questions.
Make a guess: how does «Lo veo» say "I see it" with no "I"?
Work through each screen and answer the questions as you go — some ask you to recognise the right form, some ask you to produce it by typing. Collect ⭐ stars and press Start.
These name who does the action. You'll rarely write them — the verb ending already shows the person — but you must know them:
| yo | I |
| tú | you (one friend) |
| él / ella / usted | he / she / you (polite) |
| nosotros / nosotras | we |
| vosotros / vosotras | you all (Spain, informal) |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | they / you all (polite) |
Key: Spanish normally drops the pronoun — just hablo, not yo hablo — because the ending shows the person. Use one only for emphasis, contrast or clarity (Yo estudio, tú no). usted / ustedes = the polite "you" and take the él / ellos endings.
A direct object pronoun replaces the thing or person the action is done to, so you don't repeat it:
| singular | plural |
|---|---|
| me (me) | nos (us) Higher |
| te (you) | os (you all) Higher |
| lo / la (it, him / it, her) | los / las (them) Higher |
Placement — three cases:
Meaning: lo = it / him, la = it / her. They must match the gender of the noun they replace: la película → la veo.
An indirect object pronoun shows to or for whom something happens:
| singular | plural |
|---|---|
| me (to/for me) | nos (to/for us) Higher |
| te (to/for you) | os (to/for you all) Higher |
| le (to/for him/her) | les (to/for them) Higher |
Le doy el libro — I give the book to him / her. The placement rules are exactly the same as for DOPs: before a conjugated verb, or attached to an infinitive, gerund or command.
Higher only: when a sentence has two pronouns together, le / les changes to se before lo / la / los / las — Se lo doy (I give it to him). Higher At Foundation, use just one pronoun at a time.
Reflexive verbs describe an action done to oneself — the pronoun "bounces back" to the subject. They power your daily routine: levantarse (to get up), ducharse (to shower), lavarse (to wash), llamarse (to be called), acostarse (to go to bed).
| person | form |
|---|---|
| yo | me levanto |
| tú | te levantas |
| él / ella / usted | se levanta |
| nosotros Higher | nos levantamos |
| vosotros Higher | os levantáis |
| ellos / ustedes Higher | se levantan |
Core pronouns: me, te, se (Foundation) · nos, os, se Higher. Me llamo… = "I'm called…". Watch acostarse — it's also a boot verb: me acuesto (o→ue).
Choose the correct pronoun or question word for each gap.
Reflexive verbs end in -se in the infinitive. Sort each one.
Make a guess: which pupil got "I see nothing" right in Spanish?
To make any sentence negative, drop no straight before the verb: No hablo francés (I don't speak French).
Spanish uses double negatives — and they are correct. Keep no before the verb and add the negative word after:
Shortcut: nunca and nadie can go before the verb on their own — then you drop no: Nunca como carne, Nadie viene.
Higher extras: ya no (no longer), tampoco (neither / not either), ni… ni… (neither… nor). Higher
Make a guess: why did Lucía change «qué» to «cuál»?
Wrap every question in ¿ … ? — note the upside-down opener. You can ask by intonation alone (¿Hablas español?) or use a question word. Every question word carries a written accent:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| qué | what |
| quién(es) | who |
| cuándo | when |
| dónde | where |
| cómo | how |
| cuánto / a / os / as | how much / many |
| por qué | why |
| cuál(es) | which |
Word order: question word + verb + subject — ¿Dónde vive tu hermano? (Where does your brother live?).
qué vs cuál: use qué for "what" (a definition) and cuál for "which one" (a choice): ¿Qué es esto? vs ¿Cuál prefieres?
Tap a Spanish word on the left, then tap its English meaning on the right.
Subject pronouns: yo, tú, él/ella/usted, nosotros, vosotros, ellos/ustedes — usually dropped; use for emphasis.
DOPs (what/whom): me, te, lo, la (+ nos, os, los, las Higher) — before the verb or attached to infinitive/gerund/command.
IOPs (to/for whom): me, te, le (+ nos, os, les Higher). Le doy…
Reflexive: me, te, se — daily routine (me levanto, me ducho, me llamo).
Negation: no before the verb; double negatives (no… nada / nunca / nadie).
Questions: ¿ … ? with accented question words: qué, quién, cuándo, dónde, cómo, cuánto, por qué, cuál.
These pronouns and structures let you describe people, routines and relationships. Press Finish to see your score.
You've built talking about people for AQA GCSE Spanish. 🎉
Your stars: 0 / 0
Next in the spine: Plans & opinions — the near future, opinions and gustar. Then lock this in with the Evaluate confidence quiz.
Next: test yourself in the Verify stage.