Prepositions

The Basic Table of Spanish Prepositions

 
Spanish English

A

To

Para

For

Por

Because of

En

In, At

Tras

Behind

Hacia

Toward

Contra

Against

Sin

Without

Hasta

Until

Sobre

About, On, Above, Over


 
Spanish English

Ante

Before

Según

According to

De

Of, From

Con

With

Desde*

From

Bajo

Under, Below

Entre

Between, among

* ‘Desde’ is used when referring to ‘from…to…’

Using prepositions mostly depends on idiomatic expressions. Therefore, there is no direct equivalence between Spanish and English and the correct usage of prepositions is learned mainly from experience.


 

Use of Prepositions

Prepositions as Links in a Sentence

The most common application of prepositions is their function of linking words in a sentence.


Joining Prepositions

Two prepositions may be combined to form another preposition, i.e. adjoining bajo (under) with de (from) forms debajo (underneath).


 

Adjoining Prepositions to Subject Pronouns

 

Prepositions can be attached to subject pronouns in the following cases:

a. All pronouns except first and second-person-singular (yo, tú):
The preposition will precede the subject pronoun, e.g. preposition + subject pronoun

1. For us Para nosotros
2. Against him Contra él
3. With them Con ellos
4. Without you-all Sin ustedes


 

b. First-person-singular and second-person-singular (yo, tú):
For first-person-singular, we shall use: preposition + mí (instead of preposition + yo)
For second-person-singular, we shall use: preposition + ti (instead of preposition + tú)

1. For me Para mí (Para yo)
2. Against you Contra ti (Contra )


 

The Pronoun Substitute Sí

The pronoun substitute Sí is translated to ‘himself/herself’ in English.

1. For himself Para sí (mismo)
2. For him Para él


 

The Preposition Con (with) is Irregular

 

The preposition con (with) is irregular when adjoined to the following pronouns: first-person-singular (yo), second-person-singular (tú), and with the pronoun substitute sí. For the irregular cases we add the -go suffix (see table below).
The preposition con (with) is regularly used when added to all other pronouns.

1. With you-all Con ustedes
2. With me Conmigo
3. With you Contigo
4. With himself/herself Consigo (mismo/a)


 

General Examples

1. He is going (he goes) with me Él va conmigo
2. The meal is for me La comida es para mí
3. Whose (Spanish: of whom) is that? ¿De quién es esto?
4. It’s for you-all Es para ustedes
5. Because of you I’m hungry Por ti tengo hambre
6. From Buenos-Aires to New-York Desde Buenos-Aires hasta Nueva-York
7. It’s open here from 8 to 12 Está abierto aquí desde las ocho hasta las doce
 

The preposition: A

Usage

Examples

To indicate direction

Vamos a la playa

Let’s go to the beach

To indicate destination

Llego a Francia

I arrive to France

To indicate location

Estoy a la derecha

I am to the right

To indicate relative location to another object

El camión está a la izquierda del bus

The truck is at the left of the bus

To indicate a means

Vamos a pie

We go by foot (walk)

To indicate an action

La mesa está hecha  a mano

The table is hand-made

To indicate time and age

A las dos de la tarde

At 2 o’clock PM

 

Se murió a los 40 años

He died at age 40

To link the indirect object to the verb

Digo a mi hermana...

I tell my sister…

 

Ama a su perro

He loves his dog

 

Ud. escribe una carta a sus padres

You-formal write your parents a letter


 
 

Verbs that make use of ‘a’

Ir a...

To go to…

Decidirse a...

To decide to…

Acostumbrarse a...

To get accustomed to…

Aprender a...

To learn to…

Comenzar a...

To commence…

Empezar a...

To begin…

Ayudar a...

To help…

Negarse a...

To reject…

Recibir a...

To recieve (someone)...

 


 

Idiomatic expressions with ‘a’

A la fuerza

By force

A gritos

Screaming 

A propósito

By the way

A la carta

From the menu

A mano

By hand

Ir a pie

Go by foot

Montar a caballo

Ride a horse

Uno a uno

One by one

Uno a otro

One another

Al fin

At the end

Al lado de…

On the side of

Al otro lado de....

On the other side of….

A la izquierda

On/to the left

A la derecha

On/to the right


 

The preposition: Ante

Usage Examples
To indicate precedence in time and place

Estoy ante su casa

I am in front of his house

Ante todo, dime la verdad

Before everything, tell me the truth

 

The preposition: Bajo

Usage Examples
To indicate placement of something under another thing

El tesoro está bajo la tierra

The treasure is underground

Vivimos bajo un buen régimen

We live under a good regime

 

The preposition: Con

Usage

Examples

With

Estoy con mi novia

I am with my girlfriend

Hazlo con cuidado

Do it carefully

Leo el libro con interés

I read the book with interest


 

The preposition: Contra

 

Usage

Examples

To indicate movement or direction

El asaltante me empujó contra la pared

The attacker pushed me against the wall

To indicate resistance

Estamos luchando contra el gobierno

We are fighting against the government

 


 

The preposition: De

Usage

Examples

To indicate possession

Es de mi amigo

It’s my friend’s

 

Los libros son de la señora

The books are the lady’s

To indicate material

La mesa es de madera

The table is made of wood

 

Un paquete de tabaco

A pack of tobacco

To indicate a subject

Este libro es de aventuras

This book is an adventure book

To indicate part of the whole

¿Quieres un poco de vino?

Do you want some wine?

 

Cómprame un kilo de...

Buy me a kilo of…

To indicate origin, source

Soy de Japón

I am from Japan

To indicate time

Trabajo de día

I work during the day

 

Es peligroso salir de noche

It’s dangerous to go out at night

To describe states

Estar de pie

To stand

 

Caer de cabeza

To fall on the head


 

Usage

Examples

Verbs that make use of ‘de’

Tratar de

To try to…

Quejarse de

To complain about…

Acordarse de

To remember…

Alegrarse de

To be happy about...

Cansarse de

To be worn out

Dudar de

To doubt…

Despedirse de

To say goodbye to…


 

The preposition: Desde

Usage

Examples

To indicate source, origin

El bus sale desde Lima a las cinco de la mañana

The bus leaves Lima at 5 AM

 

Viajé desde el ’92 hasta el ‘94

I traveled from ‘92 to ‘94

 


 

The preposition: En

Usage

Examples

To indicate time or place

Estamos en Perú

We are in Peru

Estamos en (el) invierno

We are in winter

El banco está enfrente del hotel

The bank is in front of the hotel

To indicate an inner position

El bus está en el túnel

The bus is in the tunnel

To describe means of transportation

En avión

By plane

En coche

By car

En bicicleta

By bicycle

En moto

By motorcycle

En barco

By boat

 


 

Usage

Examples

To indicate form of expression

Habla en serio/en broma

He is talking seriously/jokingly

Verbs that make use of ‘en’

Quedarse en

To stay in/at…

Tardar en

To be late…

Confiar en

To trust…

Insistir en

To insist on…

Esforzarse en

To make an effort…


 

The preposition: Entre

Usage

Examples

To indicate a relative location

Estoy entre el río y nuestro campamento

I am between the river and our camp

 

Ella se sienta entre nosotros

She is sitting (she sits) between us

To indicate cooperation

Entre mi hermano y mi papá han limpiado el balcón

My brother and father cleaned the porch (together)


 

The preposition: Hacia

Usage Examples
To indicate direction or estimated time

Cenamos hacia las ocho

We will eat supper around 8 PM
 

El restaurante está hacia allá

The restaurant is over there

 

The preposition: Hasta

Usage

Examples

To indicate a future occurrence or destination

¿Hasta cuándo voy a sufrir?

Until when will I suffer?


 

The preposition: Para

Usage

Examples

To indicate an objective

Las flores son para ti, mi amor

The flowers are for you, my love

 

Estudiamos para ser abogados

We are studying to be lawyers

To indicate direction or end

of motion

Viajamos para Ciudad Perdida

We are traveling to the Lost City

 

El vuelo para Santa-Fe ya ha salido

The flight to Santa-Fe has already left

To indicate a stand or comparison

Para esta época hace mucho frío

It’s very cold for this (current) season

To indicate amounts or quantities

Danos una habitación para tres personas

Give us a room for three (people)

 

¡Mozo! Una mesa para cuatro, por favor

 

Waiter! A table for four (people), please

 


 

The preposition: Por

Usage

Examples

To indicate a reason or motive

Estamos preocupados por ti

We are worried about you (because of you)

 

El hotel está cerrado por la situación económica

The hotel is closed due to the economic situation

To indicate positioning (here meaning ‘along’)

Ud. corre por el parque

You-formal are running along the park

 

Fui por la playa

I went along the beach

To indicate means (transportation, communication, etc.)

(Uds.) escuchan las noticias por la radio

You-all hear the news on the radio

 

Hablé con él por teléfono

I spoke to him over the phone


 

Usage

Examples

To indicate substitution

(Yo) pago la cuenta por tí

I pay the bill for you

 

Ella cocina por tu mamá

She cooks instead of your mother

To indicate a price

Mi hermana compró la silla por cien pesos, porque la vendedora no quiso venderla por ochenta

My sister bought the chair for a hundred pesos, since the vendor didn’t want to sell it for eighty

To state ‘for whom’ or ‘on whose side’

Votamos por él

We vote for him


 

The preposition: Según

 

Usage

Examples

According to

Según el presidente todo estará bien

According to the president everything will be alright

 


 

The preposition: Sin

 

 

Usage

Examples

Without

La vida está vacía sin tí

Life is empty without you

Sin duda, aquí es lo mejor

Without a doubt, here it’s the best

 


 

The preposition: Sobre

 

Usage

Examples

To describe positioning of something above another

El cuchillo está sobre mi maletín

The knife is on my bag

To describe a subject

Ella habló sobre él ayer

She spoke about him yesterday

 


 

The preposition: Tras

Usage

Examples

To indicate a later state

Tras la guerra vendrá la paz

After the war peace will come


 
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