Object pronouns as spoken

The short answer

Everyday Brazilian Portuguese handles object pronouns in its own way, which is not the way of formal written grammar or of Portugal. Me, te and nos go before the verb: Ele me ligou, Eu te vi, A Lu nos convidou. For "him", "her" and "it", speech uses ele and ela after the verb (Vi ele ontem) or simply leaves the object out (Comprou o pão? — Comprei). Te is the normal object for você, and lhe is a formal "you". After a preposition you need mim, você, ele or a gente, and com fuses with some of them: comigo, conosco.

How to form it

Where does the pronoun go? In Brazilian speech the rule is simple: right before the verb it belongs to.

• One verb: Ela me viu. Não te vi. Me passa o sal? (yes, even at the start of a sentence)
• Two verbs: before the second one, the infinitive or the gerund: Vou te ligar. Pode me ajudar? Tá me ouvindo?

For "to me", "to you", "to him" (indirect objects), speech uses me and te or pra + a pronoun: Me deu um presente, Mandei uma mensagem pra ela, Isso é pra você.

When to use it

• me, te, nos in every register, before the verb: Você me empresta o carregador? Eu te espero lá fora.
• ele / ela as objects in conversation, chat and informal writing: Conheço ela desde criança. Formal writing (school essays, work email, the news) uses o / a: Eu a conheço desde criança. Recognise them now; you will write them at B1.
• Nothing at all when the object is obvious: Você viu meu celular? — Vi, tá na mesa.
• lhe as a polite "you" with o senhor or a senhora, in shops, hotels and offices: Posso lhe mostrar o quarto?
• pra mim, pra você, pra ele for "to" or "for" someone: Traz um café pra mim?
• comigo, com você, com a gente: Quer ir comigo? Vem com a gente!

• Me passa o sal, por favor?Could you pass me the salt, please?me first, in speech
• Vi ela ontem no mercado.I saw her yesterday at the market.ela as an object (speech)
• Vou te ligar mais tarde.I'll call you later.te before the infinitive
• Posso lhe mostrar o apartamento?May I show you the flat?lhe = formal you
• Você quer almoçar comigo?Do you want to have lunch with me?com + mim = comigo

Contrasts and traps

• mim only after a preposition. Ela me viu, never ela viu mim; but Isso é pra mim.
• com + eu = comigo, not com mim. For "with us", say com a gente (everyday) or conosco (formal).
• Speech and writing are both Brazilian. Vi ele is what people say; Eu o vi is what a newspaper prints. Use each in its place instead of calling one of them wrong.
• te goes with você. Você sabe que eu te amo is normal Brazilian Portuguese, even though older grammar books objected to the mix.
• A pronoun hyphenated after the verb sounds European or formal. Vou ligar-te, Ajuda-me → in Brazil Vou te ligar, Me ajuda. Signs and buttons keep it: Cadastre-se.
• lhe is not "him" in conversation. "I told him" is Falei pra ele or Eu disse pra ele. Lhe sounds formal and, for most speakers, means "you".
• Before an infinitive, careful speech says pra eu: Isso é pra eu fazer? You will hear pra mim fazer a lot, but it is frowned upon.

If you speak Spanish

Good news first: like Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese puts pronouns before the verb, and me and te look the same. The differences: lo and la become ele and ela in speech (lo vi → vi ele) or o and a in writing; Spanish le is not Portuguese lhe (le dije → falei pra ele); with two verbs nothing is attached to the infinitive (quiero verte → quero te ver); and there is no se lo: se lo di → dei pra ele. Conmigo is comigo, con nosotros is com a gente, and contigo is usually com você, though contigo is common in speech too.