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Preposición
The Spanish preposition a is generally summarized as "to or at," but it has a few more meanings and uses than that.
When a is followed by the definite article el, the two words must contract:
Using a
1) Destination | |||
Estoy de camino a Madrid. | I’m on my way to Madrid. | ||
¡Vamos a la playa! | Let’s go to the beach! | ||
2) Position | |||
Alguien está a la puerta. | Someone is at the door. | ||
Siempre está a mi lado. | He’s always by my side. | ||
3) Distance | |||
Estamos a dos kilómetros de la escuela. | We’re two kilometers from the school. | ||
Vive a 20 minutos de aquí. | He lives 20 minutes from here. | ||
4) Point in time | |||
Llegará al mediodía. | She’ll arrive at noon. | ||
Escribí mi primer libro a los 25 años. | I wrote my first book at (the age of) 25. | ||
5) End of a range of time / amount | |||
Necesito de 2 a 3 horas para hacerlo. | I need 2 to 3 hours to do it. | ||
de lunes a sábado | from Monday to Saturday | ||
6) Manner or method | |||
ir a caballo | to go on horseback | ||
pintado a mano | painted by hand, hand-painted | ||
7) Personal a | |||
Veo a la chica. | I see the girl. | ||
¿Buscas a Pablo? | Are you looking for Pablo? | ||
8) After verbs | |||
Many verbs must be followed by a in front of a noun or infinitive. |
Related lessons
Spanish lesson plans
- Prepositions (Lesson plan, 6th-7th grade)
- Prepositions (Worksheet, 8th-9th grade)
- Prepositions Showing Location (Lesson, K – 2nd grade)
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