110 Problematic Prepositions in SPANISH
110 Problematic Prepositions in SPANISH
110 Problematic Prepositions in SPANISH
prepositions I
Dentro de (inside) can always replace en when referring to position inside or movement into the interior of something:
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En la cama means in bed and on the bed. Sobre la cama can mean only on the bed.
With the noun puerta you can also use the preposition a (a la puerta), but this is
becoming a little old-fashioned. In the plural, the construction a las puertas (de) is a
commonly used expression meaning at the entrance (of/to) (e.g., a town) or at the
beginning (of) (e.g., a period of time):
Las tropas estaban a las puertas de Pars. The troops were just outside Paris.
Estamos a las puertas del verano.
Its the beginning of summer.
With nouns that clearly refer to surface (tejado, suelo, mesa, etc.) you can also use
the preposition sobre, especially when you want to be very specific:
Los libros estn sobre la mesa.
Los nios caminaban sobre el tejado.
Ellos estaban tumbados sobre el fro suelo.
Certain words referring to surface can be used with sobre when the whole of the surface is meant. Compare:
at school
at a party
at the door
at the theater
at the dentists
at the bottom
in bed/on the bed
in the hospital
in/on the street
in/on the road
on a ship
on the roof
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The noun lado (side, end) can be used with a or en to indicate position:
Ella estaba sentada en la otra parte
(o: en/al otro lado).
al otro lado del telfono
Many Spanish bars and restaurants use the noun Casa in their names. When this is
the case, no articles are used. Compare:
You should be aware of the fact that the preposition a usually refers to movement
toward a place. This means that even the noun parte takes a when verbs of movement
are used:
Ella se diriga a la parte superior.
Pedro fue al otro lado.
The noun fondo means bottom and far end. When it means bottom, en el fondo is
used; when it means far end, al fondo is used:
Lo o en la radio.
Lo publiqu en este peridico.
Prepositions are not used with days of the week. Use definite articles instead: los for general reference and el to refer to a specific day of the week:
Many Spanish-speaking people dont apply this rule of proximity properly; it is very common to hear Ella estaba sentada en la mesa, which is colloquial but incorrect.
Problematic prepositions I
at the wedding
at a party
at work
at a meeting
en la boda
en una fiesta
en el trabajo
en una reunin
The preposition en is common with nouns that refer to social events or activities:
at the doctors
at the dentists
at the pharmacy
at the bakers/bakery
at the butchers/butcher shop
Other genitive constructions referring to a business are formed using the preposition
en and either the name of the owner or a specific name for a type of business:
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I hate Mondays.
She never comes on Tuesdays.
Note that in Spanish dates, both the month and the year are preceded by de. To refer
to a day of a month, use the definite article el before the number (without a preposition):
The article el is part of two constructions that translate next and last. El ! day of the
week ! que viene is the common translation for next ! day of the week:
No jugaremos el lunes que viene.
With nouns like da (day), semana (week), mes (month), and, in general, all words that
refer to periods of time (including words such as segundo, momento, etc.), en is used:
Lo har en un segundo.
Estar con vosotros en un minuto.
Ella naci en enero.
Ocurri en Navidad.
Estamos a viernes.
Estamos en enero.
The preposition en is always omitted in constructions of the type el mes que viene or la
semana pasada.
In narration, the next/following ! time word translates as a/al ! time word !
siguiente (the adjective siguiente can also precede the time word):
The preposition a is also used in headings of letters or other documents to refer to the
day on which the text was written:
En Madrid, a dos de enero de 2008
With the verb estar, the preposition a is needed to refer to a specific day of the week:
A qu da estamos?
Estamos a viernes.
Its Friday.
Its January.
When demonstratives and articles are used, the preposition is usually omitted:
Note that en usually requires singular nouns when no demonstratives or articles are
used (e.g., en sbados is highly unusual), but it is very common with the plural noun
das.
La farmacia est abierta en (o: los)
das festivos.
Ill do it in a second.
Ill be with you in a minute.
She was born in January.
It happened at Christmas.
Estar ! a is used with the days of the week, but en must be used with the time words listed
above. Compare:
But los sbados would be more common in the above example. En is rarely used when
demonstratives or articles (este, ese, aquel, un, etc.) precede:
Yo no trabajo este sbado.
Problematic prepositions I
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Dont use the preposition sobre to translate on in time expressions such as on this
occasion, which must be translated as en esta ocasin. The Spanish preposition sobre,
when used with time words, means about/approximately:
In sentences with relative pronouns it is even possible to put the preposition en at the
beginning of the sentence (before the time word). In this case the preposition en refers to
the whole of the period indicated by the time word:
En la semana que estuve aqu...
With parts of the day and other time words, the preposition a is frequent, but there
are other possibilities:
In this type of construction there may be differences of meaning or intention. The clause
En el ao que estuve aqu... tells us clearly that the speaker was here for a year, but the
clause El ao que estuve aqu... doesnt necessarily mean this; maybe the speaker was here
for a short visit in the course of that year. In other words, omission of the preposition gives
the sentence a wider range of meaning. The context will probably make the meaning clear.
Two simple examples will help clarify this:
La semana que estuve aqu estuvo llena
de sorpresas.
En la semana que estuve aqu tuve dos
accidentes.
With the words maana, tarde, and noche, the preposition a usually refers to the
next morning, afternoon, or night, while por has a wider usage:
Ella nunca viene por la tarde.
Les veremos a/por la tarde.
The time between midnight and sunrise is called la madrugada. With the word
madrugada you can use both de and por la:
Problematic prepositions I
It is possible, and even common, to say maana noche (without the preposition), but this
cant be done with other parts of the day.
When another time phrase appears before maana, tarde, or noche, the preposition
de is used, not por:
Por la noche can usually be replaced by de noche (in the evening/at night/by night):
in the morning
in the afternoon
in the evening/at night
at dawn
at sunrise
at sunset
a la maana
a la tarde
a la noche
al alba
al amanecer
al anochecer
In the first example above la semana is the subject; in the second example en la semana is
a time complement, a period during which something happened. (In the second example
the preposition en can also be omitted.)
With the words segundo, minuto, instante, and so on, the preposition en must not
be used to convey the English for:
Estar contigo en un minuto.
Slo la vi un minuto.
Estuvimos all un momento/instante.
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The grammatical implications already covered with regard to the relative pronoun
que apply here as well:
When a specific event is narrated, you can use the preposition en and definite articles
or no preposition at all; this is a case where on is used in English:
En la maana (o: La maana) del 8 de
abril recibimos importantes noticias.
When referring to mealtimes, the preposition en is used with the nouns desayuno
(breakfast), almuerzo (lunch), comida (dinner), and cena (dinner, supper):
In this type of sentence, when demonstrative adjectives are used (generally for emphasis)
the preposition is omitted in Spanish:
Esa maana del 8 de abril
recib...
en el desayuno
en la cena
Reference to level, points on a scale, measures, figures, and words that can be represented by figures (e.g., midday, twelve oclock, 12:00) usually require the preposition a:
on Monday morning
on Friday evening
English questions with how ! adjective are usually translated by the construction
qu ! noun. This interrogative construction is always preceded by the preposition a when
the question refers to position/location/level:
In questions of the type What time . . . ?, the question is always preceded by the preposition a when it refers to the start of an action:
A qu hora empieza la pelcula?
A qu hora vas a venir?
The word hora means both time and hour. It requires the preposition a when it means a
point in time (a qu hora... ) and the preposition en when it refers to a period of time (en
dos horas).
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The preposition a is not used when the question asks about physical description:
Problematic prepositions I
at midday, noon
at two oclock
at 2,000 feet
at that distance
at this height
at/in the beginning
at/in the end
at two dollars
at that age
a medioda
a las dos
a 2.000 pies
a esa distancia
a esta altura
al principio
al final
a dos dlares
a esa edad
at breakfast
at dinner
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In the first example above the subject is la distancia; subjects cant be preceded by prepositions. In the second example, la distancia is a complement, so a is used in the same way
that at is used in English.
To express at in to be good/bad at (something) requires en:
Ella es muy buena en ingls.
5. Lo terminar todo
6. Creo que el cuadro quedar mejor
7.
9. La granja est
10.
8. Pap,
un par de das.
The preposition in, when referring to school subjects, conversations, films, and so on,
translates as en:
Tengo un sobresaliente en espaol.
Ellos no tomaron parte en la carrera.
Ella estaba muy guapa en esa foto.
I have an A in Spanish.
They didnt take part in the race.
She was very beautiful in that photo.
EJERCICIO
102
The English preposition on is often used with the same meaning as about to refer to
subjects or topics (especially those that are serious or academic). In Spanish, de or sobre
must be used:
Tengo un libro de/sobre economa.
EJERCICIO
101
1.
ms de 40 dlares.
Problematic prepositions I
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EJERCICIO
103
Underline the correct choice. In some cases both answers are possible. A hyphen
indicates that no word is necessary.
1. Me encanta quedarme a/en casa en/los das de lluvia y mirar por los cristales.
2. No suelo estar a/en la oficina en/los domingos en/por la maana.
3. Los actos violentos se desataron en/de madrugada, aproximadamente en/a las
tres.
4. Les vi en/por la tarde, el/al salir del cine.
5. Maana en/por la tarde tengo que esperarles en/a la salida de la estacin.
6. Mis hijos siempre me visitan en/los das de fiesta, pero en/- ste prximo no van
a poder venir.
7. Marta no sabe en/- qu da naci su abuela, pero s sabe que fue a/en mayo.
8. Cenaremos a/en Casa Roberto, en/- donde ponen unas pizzas enormes.
9. He estado en el/al dentista, pero no me han hecho nada a/en la boca.
10. Marta estaba sentada en/a la derecha de Juan, en/a la parte trasera del auditorio.
Problematic prepositions I
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