Verbs with two objects are verbs that can take both a direct object and an indirect object in the same sentence. The direct object is the thing that is acted upon by the verb, and the indirect object is the person or thing that benefits from the action or receives something. For example, in the sentence “She gave him a book”, the direct object is “a book” and the indirect object is “him”.
There are two types of structures when using verbs with two objects:
- She gave him a book. (verb + indirect object + direct object)
- She gave a book to him. (verb + direct object + preposition + indirect object)
To or For?
The choice of “to” or “for” depends on the meaning and the verb that is used. Generally, we use “to” when the indirect object is the receiver of the direct object, and we use “for” when the indirect object is the beneficiary of the direct object.
For example, we say “He sent a letter to his friend” because his friend is the one who received the letter. But we say “He bought a gift for his friend” because his friend is the one who benefited from the gift.
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