##  [indirect objects](/writing-tips-plus/indirect-objects)

##  Avertissement

Ce contenu est offert en anglais seulement.

Action verbs can take two kinds of objects: *direct* and *indirect* objects. Indirect objects normally appear only in sentences containing a direct object. An indirect object receives the action in the verb indirectly, by receiving the direct object.

## Direct object: a brief review

A *direct object* is the direct receiver of the action expressed in the action verb. A direct object answers the question *what*? or *whom*? after an action verb.

Here’s an example of a sentence with a direct object:

- Katak deftly skinned the slain caribou.

In this sentence, the action verb is *skinned*. If you ask *skinned what*?, the answer is *the caribou*. Therefore, *caribou* is the direct object of the verb *skinned*.

**Note:** Sentences that contain a direct object do not necessarily contain an indirect object. In the example above, for instance, there is no indirect object.

## Indirect object

A sentence that contains an action verb and a direct object may also contain an *indirect* object. The indirect object is the indirect receiver of the action expressed in the verb.

Here’s an example of a sentence with a direct object and an indirect object:

- Amanda baked Jason a cake.

The action verb is *baked*. You can first find the direct object by asking *baked what*? The answer, of course, is *a cake*. *Cake* is therefore the direct object because it is the direct receiver of the action of baking: it was the cake (and not Jason) that was baked.

But Jason indirectly received the action of baking because he got the cake, the thing that was baked. Therefore, the word *Jason* is the indirect object of the verb *baked*.

## Finding the indirect object in a sentence

Here are two tips that will help you find the indirect object in a sentence.

First, the indirect object comes between the verb and the direct object. In the sentence *Amanda baked Jason a cake*, *Jason* comes between the verb *baked* and the direct object *cake*.

Second, the indirect object can be reworded as a phrase beginning with *to* or *for*. You could reword the above example using *for*:

- Amanda baked a cake *for Jason*.

Rewording using a phrase beginning with *for* is a sign that *Jason* was an indirect object in the original sentence.

Here are some more examples of sentences containing indirect objects:

- **Karl tossed Greta an apple.** \[Reword: Karl tossed an apple *to Greta*.\] Action verb: *tossed*
Direct object: *apple* (Tossed what? An apple.)
Indirect object: *Greta*, who got the apple

- **Avril gave her Mercedes a wax job.** \[Reword: Avril gave a wax job *to her Mercedes*.\] Action verb: *gave*
Direct object: *wax job* (Gave what? A wax job.)
Indirect object: *Mercedes*, which got the wax job

- **Sanjay cooks us delicious Indian meals.** \[Reword: Sanjay cooks delicious Indian meals *for us*.\] Action verb: *cooks*
Direct object: *meals* (Cooks what? Meals.)
Indirect object: *us*, who get the meals

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## Liens connexes

- [Writing Tips Plus](/fr/writing-tips-plus/index-fra) (page d’accueil)
- [Outils d’aide à la rédaction](/fr/outils-tools/index-fra)
- [Navigateur linguistique](/fr/navigateur-navigator) (permet de trouver rapidement des conseils linguistiques)
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