Direct Objects:
Sam hits the ball
Sam hits what?
The ball
In this sentence "the ball" is the Direct Object.
You find the Direct Object by asking "what?" of the verb.

Now, the tricky part.
What if you didn't want to say "the ball?" What could you replace it with?
That's right, "IT"
So, instead of, "Sam hits the ball." You can say, "Sam hits it."
The only difference in Spanish is that there is an "IT" for each gender and number, and the "IT" moves a little. Observe:
Sam golpea la pelota. Sam hits the ball.
Sam la golpea. Sam hits it.

The "4" ways to say "IT" in Spanish:

So, what decides how you say "IT?" The gender and number of the direct object

But, why does it go in front of the verb?! English doesn't do it that way.
This ain't English.
In Spanish, the object pronouns go immediately before the verb, with 3 exceptions.

  1. Attached to the end of an infinitive (To verb)
  2. Attached to the end of a gerund (Verbing)
  3. Attached to the end of a command (Verb!)
To keep it simple, just always put it in front of the verb.

Indirect Objects:
Sam hits the ball to Sally
Sam hits the ball to whom?
to Sally
In this sentence "Sally" is the Indirect Object.
You find the Indirect Object by asking "to whom?" of the verb.

Now, the tricky part.
What if you didn't want to say "to Sally?" What could you replace it with?
That's right, "HER"
So, instead of, "Sam hits the ball to Sally." You can say, "Sam hits the ball to her."
The only difference in Spanish is that the "HER" moves a little. Observe:
Sam golpea la pelota a Sally. Sam hits the ball to Sally.
Sam le golpea la pelota. Sam hits the ball to her.

The ways to say "to whomever" in Spanish:

But, why does it go in front of the verb?! English doesn't do it that way.
This ain't English.
In Spanish, the object pronouns go immediately before the verb, with 3 exceptions.

  1. Attached to the end of an infinitive (To verb)
  2. Attached to the end of a gerund (Verbing)
  3. Attached to the end of a command (Verb!)
To keep it simple, just always put it in front of the verb.

Double Object Pronouns:
Sam hits the ball to Sally.
What if you didn't want to say "to Sally?" nor "the ball. What would you replace them with?
That's right, "HER" and "IT"
So, instead of, "Sam hits the ball to Sally." You can say, "Sam hits it to her."

Now, the tricky part.
Which one goes first, since they both go before the verb?
Remember to LAY LOW, but SAY LOW when doing double object pronouns.
The correct order is: le lo (LAY LOW).
But when "le" (or "les")comes before "lo" (or any other DOP), it changes to "se lo" (SAY LOW).Observe:
Sam golpea la pelota a Sally. Sam hits the ball to Sally.
Sam se la golpea. Sam hits the ball to Sally.

Clear as mud?