Indirect object nouns and pronouns (i pronomi indiretti) answer the question to whom? or for whom? In English, the word "to" is sometimes omitted:

We gave a cookbook to Uncle John.

We gave Uncle John a cookbook.

In Italian, the preposition a is always used before an indirect object noun:

Ho regalato un libro di cucina allo zio Giovanni. (I gave a cookbook to Uncle John.)

Perché non regali un profumo alla mamma? (Why dont you give Mother some perfume?)

Puoi spiegare questa ricetta a Paolo? (Can you explain this recipe to Paul?)

Indirect object pronouns replace indirect object nouns. They are identical in form to direct object pronouns, except for the third-person forms gli, le, and loro. For all the forms, see below.

All indirect object pronouns except loro and Loro precede a conjugated verb, just like the direct object pronouns (loro and Loro follow the verb):

Le ho dato tre ricette. (I gave her three recipes.)

Ci offrono un caffè. (They offer us a cup of coffee.)

Parliamo loro domani. (Well talk to them tomorrow.)

Similarly, indirect object pronouns attach to infinitives, which lose their final -e:

Non ho tempo di parlargli. (I have no time to talk to him.)

If the infinitive is preceded by a conjugated form of dovere, potere, or volere, the indirect object pronoun may also precede the conjugated verb:

Voglio parlargli./Gli voglio parlare. (I want to talk to him.)

Also note that le and gli are never elided before a verb beginning with a vowel or an h:

Le offro un caffè. (I offer her a cup of coffee.)

Gli hanno detto "Ciao!". (They said "Ciao!" to him.)

The table below provides a few common Italian verbs that are often used with indirect object nouns or pronouns.