Spanish Prepositions with a
Hardly any other preposition has so many different meanings as the preposition a. In addition to spatial and temporal conditions, a is used to express the way it is expressed.
Speciality:
If a stands before the masculine article el, a and el merge to al.
The following relationships are expressed with a:
| Relation | Example | |
| Direction | Voy a la calle | |
| Distance | Valencia está a 170km de Alicante | |
| Purpose | Cecilia ha venido a visitarme | |
| Point in time | La cita es a las ocho de la mañana | |
| Period | A los 15 días me devolvió las deudas | |
| Frequency | Voy a clases de español dos veces a la semana | |
| Age information | A los veinte años viajé por primera vez a Chile | |
| Manner | Me encanta el pollo a la plancha | |
| Movements | Hicimos una caminata a pie | |
| Times | A las cuatro en punto | |
| Cardinal points | Chaco está al norte de Argentina | |
| Infinitive | Voy a estudiar Medicina | |
| Indirect Object (Dative) | A nosotros nos gusta la idea | |
| Direct Object (Accusative) for the designation of persons or living beings | Recojo a Linda |
a is connected according to certain verbs
acostumbrarse a – get accustomed (to)
dedicarse a – devote oneself to something
oler a – smell (after)
saber a – taste (after)
In addition, there are fixed phrases “infinitive constructions” consisting of a verb followed by the preposition “a” and a second verb in the infinitive. The first verb is conjugated and can have a transferring meaning.
ir a – have something planned; will do something
comenzar a / empezar a – begin to
ponserse a – to start (with determination)
volver a – do something again
invitar a – inviting to
aprender a – learning to
enseñar a – teach, show
With preposition a, adverbial expressions are also formed:
a veces – sometimes
a menudo – often
a lo mejor – possibly
a tiempo – timely
al final – finally
a plazos – in installments
al contado – in cash
a toda prisa – hurriedly
al revés – inverse
a oscuras – in the dark
a largo plazo/a corto plazo – long-term/short-term
a favor – in favour