Tonya mailed her brother a postcard from Australia.
Which word is the direct object of the sentence?
postcard
Sophia gave the club's sponsor a copy of her speech.
Which word is the indirect object in the sentence?
The direct object of the sentence is "postcard."
The direct object in a sentence is the noun or pronoun that receives the action of the verb. In this sentence, the verb is "mailed," and it is the action that Tonya is doing. The direct object is the recipient of that action.
To determine the direct object, we can ask the question "What did Tonya mail?" The answer to that question is "a postcard." Therefore, "postcard" is the direct object of the sentence.
By analyzing the sentence and understanding the role of the verb and the action it denotes, we can identify the direct object.