The prepositions “a,” “de,” and “en,” are the most common prepositions in Spanish. In previous posts, we discussed their uses as Spanish prepositions of time and Spanish prepositions of place. But it doesn’t end there! These prepositions have other important (and ones you need to learn). Plus, we will also cover how to use other useful Spanish prepositions such as con meaning with, contra meaning against, sin meaning without, etc. Are you ready to finish our series on Spanish prepositions? Let’s dive in!
The most common Spanish prepositions
The most common prepositions in Spanish are “a,” “de,” and “en.” Let’s go over their uses!
'A’
The preposition “a” is one of the most common prepositions in Spanish. This is great because you can use it for many things, but it can also cause some confusion. Does it mean “at”? “To”? “By”? We have already covered when to use it to introduce time or place, but let’s see what other uses this preposition has.
To indicate the way or means to do something
Use the preposition “a” to introduce the manner or instrument used to do something:
To indicate purpose with verbs of movement
I want you to stop for a second and think about verbs that express movement in Spanish... Did you think about ir meaning to go, irse meaning to leave, llegar meaning to arrive, and salir meaning to go out? Great job! These verbs can join the preposition “a” to indicate purpose:
Here’s a list of verbs of movement in Spanish we’ve prepared for you.
Personal a
This one is important: when introducing a direct object that is a person or pet that is specified, you need to use the preposition a:
Also, use the personal a with the words alguien meaning someone, anyone, nadie meaning no one, alguno meaning some, ninguno meaning none, and cualquiera meaning any if they refer to people:
For more on this, check out our post on the Spanish personal a!
To introduce the indirect object
We always introduce the indirect object with a:
To indicate simultaneous actions with an infinitive
You can use al (a + el) along with a verb in the infinitive to indicate that two actions happened at the same time:
To indicate distribution.
Finally, use the preposition “a” to indicate distribution of an amount:
‘De’
De is also a very useful preposition in Spanish. Previously, we learned that we can use it to indicate the starting point of a movement or a period of time, but it can be used to indicate many other things.
To indicate possession or ownership
De is the Spanish equivalent to the English possessive ’s:
If you combine it with the word quien meaning who to ask questions, then you’ll get the equivalent of “whose”:
To learn more about possession in Spanish using preposition de, click the link!
To indicate origin
If you’re telling where someone or something is from, use de meaning from to introduce their origin:
Este chocolate es de Ecuador.Translation: This chocolate is from Ecuador.Nancy es de Uruguay.Translation: Nancy is from Uruguay.To indicate material
When speaking about the material something is made of, use de:
Me gusta la ropa de algodón.Translation: I like cotton clothes.¿Te gusta la salsa de tomate?Translation: Do you like tomato sauce?To indicate topic
Use de to indicate the topic of a book, conference, movie, etc. Think of it as a synonym of sobre meaning about:
La película es de una familia en Venezuela.Translation: The movie is about a family in Venezuela.Esta conferencia es de lenguas modernas.Translation: This conference is about modern languages.To indicate characteristics
If you want to describe a person or an animal and mention a characteristic, de could be a useful preposition:
La niña de verde es la hija de mi vecina.Translation: The girl in green is my neighbor’s daughter.Mi hermano tiene un hijo de tres años.Translation: My brother has a three-year-old son.To describe a condition or state with a noun
Finally, you can use de + noun to describe a condition or state:
De joven, mi padre trabajaba mucho.Translation: As a young man, my father worked a lot.María está de mesera en un restaurante.Translation: María is working as a waitress in a restaurant.
‘En’
We’ve also learned that “en” is a useful preposition to indicate time and place, but did you know that you can also use it to indicate manner or with means of transportation?
To indicate manner
You can use en meaning in to indicate the way or manner something is done:
En la biblioteca puedo estudiar en silencio.Translation: At the library, I can study in silence.To introduce means of transportation
It’s possible to use en to introduce means of transportation. In this context, it means “by”:
¿Tú vas a la universidad en metro?Translation: Do you go to the university by metro?
With infinitives in expressions that indicate order like el primero en… or la primera en… (the first one to…), el segundo en… or la segunda en… (the second one to…), el último en… or la última en… (the last one to…), etc.
Sara fue la primera en llegar a la fiesta.Translation: Sara was the first one to arrive at the party.
Other useful Spanish prepositions
As you know, Spanish prepositions are more than just a, de, or en. We have already covered these plus other prepositions that indicate time or place, but there are more useful prepositions that you might want to learn, such as con meaning with, contra meaning againstcontra (against), médiante meaning by, by means of, según meaning according to, sin meaning without, versus meaning against, opposite and vía meaning via, by. Interested? Keep reading!
‘Con’
The preposition con can be translated as “with” in the following cases:
to indicate relationship
Tengo una buena relación con mi hermano.Translation: I have a good relationship with my brother.to indicate the instrument used to do something
La bebé come con la mano.Translation: The baby eats with her hand.to indicate manner
Los deportistas jugaron con entusiasmo.Translation: The sportsmen played with enthusiasm.to indicate company, collaboration, or mix
Viajo con María esta tarde.Translation: I’m traveling with María this afternoon.Trabajo con un equipo de 10 personas.Translation: I work with a team of 10 people.Un café con azúcar, por favor.Translation: One coffee with sugar, please.
Con can also be used in the following contexts:
to indicate content
Tengo una caja con muchas fotos.Translation: I have a box full of pictures.to indicate concession
When you take into account a condition or context, you can use the preposition con as “despite”:
‘Contra’
We had already learned that we can use contra meaning against to indicate contact, but it can also indicate opposition, fight, or battle:
‘Mediante’
Use mediante meaning by, by means of to indicate the means to do something:
‘Según’
If you want to indicate a point of view, use según meaning according to to do it:
Según este libro, tomar leche no es muy bueno.Translation: According to this book, drinking milk is not so good.
If you’re indicating the point of view of a person, use subject pronouns after the preposition:
Según can also mean “depending on”:
Haremos la fiesta según quien pueda venir.Translation: We’ll make the party depending on who can come.
‘Sin’
As the opposite of con meaning with, sin meaning withoutsin (without) is used to indicate that something or someone is missing:
‘Versus’
Depending on the context, this preposition can mean against or opposite:
‘Vía’
Finally, use vía meaning via, byto introduce a place you go through or a means of doing something:
To sum up
As you can see, prepositions in Spanish are complex and interesting. I always tell my students that it takes time, patience, and practice to master them. Remember that many verbs in Spanish require a preposition, so to help you out, we made a list of verbs that require prepositions a, de, and en. To close this series, we have prepared one last printable for you, it summarizes the Spanish prepositions covered in this post, as well as their uses and examples. We’ve also prepared this exercise for you. Happy learning!
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