examinarlos

Examinarlos is a Spanish verb phrase formed by the infinitive examinar with the direct object pronoun los, meaning “to examine them.” The base verb examinar comes from Latin examinare, historically meaning to weigh or test. In modern Spanish, examinar is a transitive verb that can take a variety of direct objects; when referring to a previously mentioned group, the object pronoun los is attached to the infinitive, yielding examinarlos.

Usage and grammar

Examinarlos is used to describe the act of examining a group or set of people or things. The placement of the pronoun depends on the tense or mood: with a finite verb, the pronoun typically appears before the conjugated verb (Los examiné ayer). In periphrastic constructions that use an infinitive or a gerund, the pronoun attaches to the infinitive or gerund form (Voy a examinarlos; Estoy examinándolos). The pronoun must agree in gender and number with the noun it replaces; los is masculine plural, used for groups of males or mixed groups, or for masculine plural nouns.

Examples

- Debemos examinarlos antes de la reunión. (We must examine them before the meeting.)

- Los investigadores decidieron examinarlos con más detalle. (The researchers decided to examine them in more detail.)

- No los puedo examinar ahora. (I can’t examine them now.)

- Examinarlos es necesario para evaluar la seguridad. (Examining them is necessary to assess safety.)

Notes

Examinarlos is primarily a syntactic construction rather than a separate lexical item. It is widely used in medical, educational, legal, and research contexts whenever the action of examining a group is described. See also examinar, pronombres clíticos, and Spanish grammar on clitic placement.