Distransitive verbs

Transitivity is an important property of verbs. Ditransitive verbs require both an
indirect and direct object . They follow this pattern:

Subject + Verb + Indirect Object + Direct Object
(You) Tell me a story.
He showed us his war medals.
We bought David a birthday cake.
Can you lend your colleague a pen?

E.g. You should tell your parents all your problems. (Indirect object = parents;
direct object = problems.)

Some verbs (such as talk) can be used both ditransitively and transitively:

Indirect Object Direct Object
Ditransitive David told the children a story.
Transitive David told - a story.

These are the verbs that are most commonly used in a ditransitive pattern:

to ask , to describe, to pass, to suggest
to bring , to give, to promise , to teach
to buy , to hand , to provide , to tell
to call, to leave , to send
to consider , to lend , to serve
to demonstrate , to offer , to show