Ditransitive verb

A ditransitive verb takes two objects: a direct object (the thing given, sent or told) and an indirect object (the person who receives it), as in 'he handed her the key'.

He handed her the key. Two objects. The key is the direct object, the thing handed. Her is the indirect object, the person who received it. Verbs that can work this way include give, send, tell, show, offer, promise, buy, lend, teach and hand.

The name is plain once you see it: an intransitive verb takes no object, a transitive verb takes one, and a ditransitive verb (di- meaning two) takes two.

Direct object and indirect object

Two questions sort them out.

• Ask what? after the verb. The answer is the direct object: handed what? The key.
• Ask to whom? or for whom? The answer is the indirect object: handed it to whom? Her.

In the two-object order the indirect object always comes first, straight after the verb, with no preposition. More examples, with the indirect object in bold:

• She sent him a letter.
• The old man told the children a story.
• Can you pour me a drink?
• I owe you an apology.
• They offered the new hire a desk by the window.
• Her father built her a bookcase.

A verb is ditransitive in a sentence, not for life. She read has no object, she read the letter has one, and she read him the letter has two. The same verb, three patterns.

The to and for alternation

Most ditransitive verbs let you say the same thing two ways.

• He handed her the key. The indirect object comes first, with no preposition.
• He handed the key to her. The direct object comes first, and the receiver moves into a prepositional phrase at the end.

Which preposition you need depends on the verb.

Verbs that take to. These describe something passing to a receiver: give, hand, send, lend, show, tell, offer, pass, sell, pay, owe, teach, throw, bring, promise, write. She lent her brother the car becomes She lent the car to her brother.

Verbs that take for. These describe something done on someone's behalf: buy, make, cook, get, find, build, bake, save, order, pour, fetch. He cooked his mother dinner becomes He cooked dinner for his mother.

A few verbs take only one pattern. Explain, describe, say, suggest, announce and donate take only the prepositional one, so explain the rule to me is fine and explain me the rule is not. A few others, such as cost and envy, take only the two-object one: the mistake cost him his job, never cost his job to him. Ask goes its own way: ask her a question, or formally, ask a question of her.

Ditransitive verbs also have two passives, one for each object: She was given the key and The key was given to her.

Which order to use: stress and weight

The two orders are not interchangeable, and this is where the grammar becomes a writing tool.

Whatever comes last takes the stress. English puts its weight at the end of a clause.

• In the end she left her sister the house. The news is the house.
• In the end she left the house to her sister. The news is who got it.

When a note on your draft says a line lands on the wrong word, swapping a ditransitive around is often the cheapest fix available, and unlike a cleft sentence it costs no extra words.

Put the heavier object last. English prefers the longer element at the end. He handed the key to the woman who had been waiting since six reads easily. He handed the woman who had been waiting since six the key makes the reader hold a whole clause open before the short object arrives.

Pronoun direct objects usually go first. He gave it to her is what most writers use. He gave her it sounds awkward to most readers.

Transitive, intransitive and ditransitive compared

• Intransitive: no object. The engine stalled. See intransitive verb.
• Transitive: one object. She closed the file. See transitive verb.
• Ditransitive: two objects. She sent him the file.

Do not confuse any of these with a linking verb. In she seemed tired, tired is not an object. It describes the subject.

Common mistakes

• Calling an object complement an indirect object. In They elected her captain, her is the direct object and captain describes her. That is not a ditransitive pattern, and the test shows it: elected captain to her is nonsense. The same goes for They named the dog Rex and The news made him angry.
• Forcing two objects onto a verb that will not take them. Can you describe me the house? Fix: Can you describe the house to me?
• Burying a long indirect object in the middle. She gave the man who had driven four hours through the snow to see her the letter. Fix: She gave the letter to the man who had driven four hours through the snow to see her.
• Putting a pronoun last when it should come first. He sold his neighbour it. Fix: He sold it to his neighbour.

Frequently asked questions

What is a ditransitive verb?

A ditransitive verb is a verb that takes two objects in the same clause. In 'she sent him a letter', the letter is the thing sent (the direct object) and him is the person who receives it (the indirect object).

What are some examples of ditransitive verbs?

Common ones are give, send, hand, lend, show, tell, teach, offer, promise, owe, pay, sell, bring, buy, make, cook and find. Examples: 'I owe you an apology', 'Can you pour me a drink?', 'They offered her the job'.

What is the difference between a direct object and an indirect object?

The direct object is what the action is done to: the thing given, sent or shown. The indirect object is who receives it or benefits from it. Ask 'what?' to find the direct object, then 'to whom?' or 'for whom?' to find the indirect one.

What is the difference between transitive and ditransitive verbs?

A transitive verb takes one object ('she read the letter'). A ditransitive verb takes two ('she read him the letter'). Many verbs can be either, depending on the sentence.

Is 'explain' a ditransitive verb?

Not in the two-object pattern. English allows 'explain the plan to me' but not 'explain me the plan'. Describe, say, suggest, announce and donate behave the same way, and they are a common trap for writers whose first language is not English.