4

I am studying Spanish with Michel Thomas Method. It says the following:

I don’t know him. = No lo conozco.

I don't understand this? I thought lo means it. Shouldn't it be le? If not, then when do you use lo to mean he?

big_smile
  • 1,619
  • 4
  • 23
  • 27
  • You use lo for he when there exists no direct object. le, when used with a verb as an indirect object, can translate to to him/her/it and for him/her/it. – Jacob Jul 07 '15 at 17:17

2 Answers2

5

Because he is the direct object. And the masculine direct object is lo. Although, you could still get away with saying No le conozco, it would mean more like

I don't know him know him.'

or

He isn't known to me.

As in, I don't know how he is as a person... ,I haven't gotten to know him. Whereas, no lo conozco is straightforward don't know who he is.

Cortesía

As mentioned by guifa, LE in that context can also express courtesy. While lo can, as you mentioned in your OP big_smile, refer to it.. and if you're trying to be formal, you definitely don't want to refer to someone as it

dockeryZ
  • 3,932
  • 17
  • 26
  • So is it best not to think of lo as being equal to it, but more of a general pronoun that can stand for anything? If so, when do you know when to use lo and le? – big_smile Jul 07 '15 at 16:48
  • 1
    Although lo can be translated to it in English... it simply refers to an object, a person, a place, or a thing. – dockeryZ Jul 07 '15 at 16:50
  • 1
    Le is an indirect object. – dockeryZ Jul 07 '15 at 16:51
  • 2
    this should help you http://www.chompchomp.com/terms/indirectobject.htm – dockeryZ Jul 07 '15 at 16:54
  • 3
    @dockerys le is normally an indirect object, but for some speakers it can function as a direct object. For users of the leísmo de cortesía, pretty common in the Americas, le conozco would be "I don't know you, sir/ma'am", whereas lo conozco would be "I don't know him". – user0721090601 Jul 08 '15 at 00:50
  • @guifa wouldn't no lo conozco be I don't know him? – big_smile Jul 08 '15 at 10:39
  • 1
    @big_smile err, yes, both of my Spanish sentences needed a no in front (or the English ones needed to be in the affirmative). This is what I get for typing things out when I need to be in bed. – user0721090601 Jul 08 '15 at 11:51
  • 1
    Right @guifa, I did forget about that. CORTESÍA – dockeryZ Jul 08 '15 at 12:17
  • @guifa Thanks, I was just double checking because in some languages, no can be omitted. Thank goodness that isn't the case in Spanish, as it gets very confusing. – big_smile Jul 08 '15 at 16:03
1

In "no lo conozco", the "lo" stands for "him". Therefore making it I don't know "him" as opposed to "no conozco" which would just mean "I don't know".

Tifa MB
  • 11
  • 1