A ditransitive verb is a verb that has a subject and two objects, a direct object and an indirect object. The most common ditransitive verbs are those that involve acquiring or ceding something: to give, to make, to share, etc.

They can usually be written in one of two forms:

• "{subject} {conjugated verb} {direct object} {indirect object}"
• "{subject} {conjugated verb} {indirect object} {preposition} {direct object}"

For example: "X gave Y the box", which can also be written with a preposition as "X gave the box to Y". Here, "X" is the subject, "Y" the indirect object/receiver, and "the box" is the direct object/patient.

Of course, they can be rewritten in the passive voice if you feel like doing so: "The box was given to Y by X", or "Y was given the box by X".

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