direct object

noun

a word or group of words representing the person or thing upon which the action of a verb is performed or toward which it is directed: in English, generally coming after the verb, without a preposition. In He saw it the pronoun it is the direct object of saw.

Origin of direct object

First recorded in 1900–05

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for direct object

direct object

noun

grammar a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase whose referent receives the direct action of a verb. For example, a book is the direct object in the sentence They bought Anne a bookCompare indirect object

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

direct object in Culture

direct object

A noun, pronoun, or group of words serving as the receiving end of an action, such as the ball in “Tabitha hit the ball.” A direct object can be a word, phrase, or clause: “Sam chose Rusty to play shortstop”; “I will never understand why he came home.” (Compare indirect object.)