Apostrophes in Weak Pronouns

Level 2

Pronoun spelling depends on whether it precedes or follows the verb and on adjacent vowels.

How It Works

Before a vowel-initial verb, em, et and es can become m', t' and s': m'agrada, t'espera, s'obre. Singular direct-object el and often la become l', though feminine la stays before unstressed initial i/u: la inviten.

After a vowel-ending verb, some pronouns reduce to an apostrophized form: porta'm, veure'l, compra'n. After a consonant, a hyphen joins the full postverbal form: portar-me, llegir-lo. Hi and ho do not apostrophize.

Choose the pronoun's grammatical role first. Singular indirect-object li does not become l' before a vowel: li agrada remains two words. With two pronouns, additional combination rules determine the forms and apostrophe placement; do not combine two independently chosen spellings at random.

Examples (3)

  1. M'agrada aquest llibre.

    I like this book.

  2. Porta'n dues.

    Bring two of them.

  3. Li explicaré el problema.

    I will explain the problem to him or her.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Apostrophes in Weak PronounsLevel 2

Learn This First

Understand an apostrophe as vowel elision. Recognize post-infinitive pronoun attachment.