By, With, From, Of
Spanish: AQA A Level, topic 17.1.1
By, With, From, To
Prepositions are words that come directly before another word to express the relationship between the words that come before or after it.
En - in
- 'En' is used to show location, time or how something is done.
- E.g. Estoy en mi casa.
- I am in my house.
- E.g. Tengo una reunión en una hora.
- I have a meeting in an hour.
- E.g. Vamos en avión.
- We are going by plane.
Hacia - towards, about
- 'Hacia' is used to show movement or opinion towards something and the rough time.
- Corrí hacia mi casa.
- I ran towards my house.
- Corrí hacia mi casa.
- Nuestra responsabilidad hacia el medio ambiente.
- Our responsibility towards the environment.
- Hacia medianoche.
- At about midnight.
Hasta - until, as far as
- 'Hasta' is used in a lot of idiomatic expressions, mostly to do with saying goodbye.
- Hasta luego, hasta mañana
- Until later (goodbye), until tomorrow.
- It is also used to show a time limit.
- La tienda está abierta hasta las tres.
- The shop is open until 3.
Según - according to
- 'Según' means according to, it is normally followed by a noun.
- E.g. Según el autor.
- According to the author.
- E.g. Según la encuesta.
- According to the survey.
Sin - without
- 'Sin' means without, it can be followed by a noun or a verb.
- E.g. Sin saberlo.
- Without knowing it.
- E.g. Sin perjuicio.
- Without prejudice.
- It is also used in certain phrases:
- E.g. Sin embargo - however.
- E.g. Sin duda - certainly (without a doubt).
Cerca - Near
- 'Cerca' means near, it can be followed by a noun or a verb.
- E.g. Cerca de mi casa hay una tienda.
- Near my house there is a shop.
- Puedo caminar hasta la escuela porque está cerca.
- I can walk to school because it is close.
'A' and 'De'
Here are the uses of the prepositions 'a' and 'de':
'A'
- When the action of the sentence is happening to a person, you need a personal 'a'.
- Yo llamo a mi madre.
- I call my mum.
- No veo a nadie
- I cannot see anyone.
- Mi hermana quiere ayudar a mucha gente.
- My sister wants to help a lot of people.
'A'
- 'A' is used when you want to talk about the idea of travelling.
- When 'el' is used right after 'a' it becomes 'al'.
- Voy a el cine → voy al cine.
- I am going to the cinema.
- Iremos a la playa.
- We will go to the beach.
Specific verbs
- There are specific verbs that use 'a' after them.
- Ayudar a (to help to).
- Empezar a (to start to).
- Ir a (to go to).
- Llegar a (to arrive at).
- Volver a (to return to).
'De'
- 'De' is used as a preposition to show who something belongs to.
- Es la camisa de mi hermana.
- It is the shirt of my sister.
- 'De' is also used to show where something is from or started.
- Soy de Colombia.
- I am from Colombia.
'De' after some verbs
- There are specific verbs that use de.
- Tratarse de (to be about).
- Acabar de (to have just).
- Tratar de (to try to).
Test yourself on By, With, From, Of
How do you say 'towards' in Spanish?
How do you say 'to try to' in Spanish?