lo
it
Stands in for a noun already mentioned, or points vaguely at an unnamed thing
Encoding Strategies:
repetition
The most useful translation for lo is it, which points at something without explicitly naming it.0
lo
it, him (masculine direct object)
Replaces a masculine noun that's already been mentioned, just like "it" or "him" in English.
¿Dónde está el libro? No lo veoWhere is the book? I don't see it.
Vi a tu hermano ayer. Lo saludé en la calleI saw your brother yesterday. I greeted him on the street.
lo que
what, that which
When followed by que, we add additional information describing the vague 'it'.
No entiendo lo que dicesI don't understand what you're saying (I don't understand the thing that you're saying)
Lo que me molesta es la falta de respetoWhat bothers me is the lack of respect (the thing that bothers me is the lack of respect)
lo [adjective]
the ... thing
The 'it' is just a vague thing described by that adjective.
Lo bueno de vivir aquí es el climaThe good thing about living here is the weather.
Lo difícil fue despedirseThe hard part was saying goodbye (the difficult thing was saying goodbye)
lo [adjective / adverb] que
how
The 'it' is just a vague thing that expresses the degree or intensity of something. The que then anchors that degree to a specific situation.
No sabes lo difícil que esYou don't know how difficult it is (you don't know the difficult thing it is)
Me sorprende lo rápido que aprendióIt surprises me how quickly she learned (it surprises me the rapid way that she learned)