Double Objects with 给, 问, 教, 送 and 告诉
Say who gets what with verbs like 给, 问, 教, 送 and 告诉: verb + person + thing, as in 老师给我一本书.
Pattern
subject + verb + person (object 1) + thing (object 2): 老师给我一本书
With two objects, the person always comes first and the thing second.
妈妈给我一个苹果。
When to use Double Objects with 给, 问, 教, 送 and 告诉
A few verbs can take two objects: first the person who receives something, then the thing: 老师给我一本书 “the teacher gives me a book”. The order is fixed, and no word like “to” comes in between: say 给我一本书, not 给一本书我. The verbs to know first are 给 “give”, 问 “ask”, 教 “teach”, 送 “give as a present” and 告诉 “tell”.
我可以问你一件事吗？
Can I ask you something?
王老师教我们汉语。
Ms. Wang teaches us Chinese.
他告诉我他的电话号码。
He told me his phone number.
我送妈妈一件衣服。
I’m giving Mom a piece of clothing as a gift.
Common traps
- Person first, thing second: 给我一本书, not 给一本书我.
- 说 can’t take a person as an object: 我跟你说一件事 or 我告诉你一件事, not 我说你一件事.
- 打电话 isn’t a two-object verb: 我给妈妈打电话, not 我打电话妈妈.
Targeted drill
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