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Compound Prepositions

A preposition that is composed of more than one word is called a compound preposition. The last word of a compound preposition is always one of the simple prepositions, so compound prepositions are easy to recognize. You will notice that many of the following compound prepositions are formed with a directional word and the simple preposition de. Remember that if a directional word is used without de, it is no longer considered a preposition.

a partir de

from (time or date) on, starting (time or date)

al lado de

next to

a lo largo de

along

a través de

through

a espaldas de

behind

a fines de

at the end

abajo de

underneath

adentro de

inside (of)

afuera de

outside (of)

alrededor de

around

antes de

before

arriba de

above

cerca de

near

debajo de

under

delante de

before (space), in front of

dentro de

in, within, inside of

después de

after (time or order)

detrás de

behind, after

en vez de

instead of

en lugar de

in place of

encima de

on top of, above

enfrente de

in front of

frente a

opposite, facing

fuera de

outside of

junto a

close to, next to

lejos de

far from

Idiomatic usage

One of the most frustrating aspects of learning a foreign language is that often you can look up every word individually, but when you put them together they make no sense. When a group of words has a meaning separate from the individual words of which it is composed, it is called an idiomatic expression. Most idiomatic expressions include at least one preposition. It is important to learn to use the correct preposition in an idiomatic expression because a different preposition can completely change the meaning of the expression.

A lot of idiomatic expressions include the preposition por. You must memorize each expression because none logically follows any of the rules for using por. The following is a list of important idiomatic expressions that include the preposition por.

por supuesto

of course, naturally

por lo visto

apparently

por un lado

on one hand

por otro (lado)

on the other (hand)

por ejemplo

for example

por lo demás

furthermore

por lo menos

at least

por lo mismo

for that very reason

por lo que a mí me toca

as far as I am concerned

poner en ridículo

to make someone look ridiculous

por desgracia

unfortunately

por mi parte

as far as I am concerned

por último

finally

por poco

almost

por completo

completely

por lo contrario

on the contrary

por otra parte

on the other hand

por consecuencia

consequently

por consiguiente

accordingly

por lo tanto

consequently

por culpa de

by fault of

por motivo de

on account of

por allá

around there, that way

por aquí

around here, this way

por todos lados

all over, everywhere

por todas partes

on all sides, all over, everywhere

por dentro y por fuera

inside and outside

por ahora

for now

por aquel entonces

at that time

por esa epoca

at that time

por lo pronto

for the time being

por separado

separately

por la mañana

in the morning

por la tarde

in the afternoon

por la noche

at night

Here are some idiomatic expressions using the preposition para:

para siempre

forever

para nada

no way (not for anything)

para que

so that

Here are some idiomatic expressions using the preposition a:

a caballo

on horseback

a fines de

at the end of

a la antigua

in the old fashioned way

a lo (adjective)

in the (adjective) style

a la orilla de

at the edge of

a lo sumo

at the most

Any verb can be used after the preposition a + el ( al) in its infinitive form to mean “upon (verb)-ing.”

al entrar

upon entering

al terminar

upon finishing

The following list contains idiomatic expressions using the preposition con:

con cariño

affectionately, caringly

con énfasis

emphatically

con cuidado

cautiously

con gusto

with pleasure

con permiso

excuse me (when passing)

con razón

with reason (correct)

Here are some idiomatic expressions using the preposition de:

de corazón

sincerely

de acuerdo

in agreement

de hoy en adelante

from today on

de mal en peor

from bad to worse

de modo que

so that

de pie

upright, standing

The following list presents idiomatic expressions using the preposition en:

en avión

by plane

en cambio

in exchange

en efecto

in fact

en voz alta

in a loud voice (out loud)

en voz baja

in a soft voice

en la actualidad

nowadays

en realidad

in reality

Here are some idiomatic expressions using the preposition sin:

sin embargo

nevertheless

sin ton ni son

without rhyme or reason

sin más ni más

without further ado

Verbs with prepositions

Another idiomatic usage of prepositions is with verbs. Certain Spanish verbs require that a specific preposition always follow any form of the verb. After the preposition, there may be a noun or another verb. If a verb follows the preposition, it must be in the infinitive form, regardless of how the English equivalent is stated. In English, the second verb will often be in its infinitive form, as in Spanish; sometimes, however, the second verb is in its gerund form, with the -ing ending (for example, “He limits himself to watching the games because of his injury” or “She risks losing everything”).

Acertar a (in the third list, below) is a good example because there are two ways to translate it. Él acierta a terminar su tarea can be translated as “He manages to finish his homework” or as “He succeeds in finishing his homework”; in both English phrases, when translated back into Spanish, the verb that follows a form of acertar a will be in its infinitive form.

The verbs below are always followed by the preposition that follows in the list, even though English might use a different preposition.

Here is a list of verbs followed by the preposition por:

comenzar por

to begin by

preocuparse por

to be worried about

interesarse por

to be interested in

estar por

to be inclined to

Below is an example of a verb followed by the preposition para:

estar para

to be about to

This list contains verbs followed by the preposition a:

acercarse a

to get close to

acertar ( e> ie) a + infinitive

to manage to, to succeed in

acudir a

to turn to

animar a + infinitive

to encourage to

aprender a + infinitive

to learn + infinitive

asistir a

to attend (a function)

atreverse a

to dare to

ayudar a + infinitive

to help + infinitive

comenzar ( e> ie) a + infinitive

to begin + infinitive

cuidar a

to care for, take care of (someone)

decidirse a + infinitive

to decide + infinitive

dedicarse a

to dedicate oneself to

echarse a

to begin

empezar ( e> ie) a + infinitive

to begin + infinitive

enseñar a + infinitive

to teach + infinitive

forzar ( o> ue) a + infinitive

to force + infinitive

inspirar a + infinitive

to inspire + infinitive

invitar a

to invite to

negarse ( e> ie) a + infinitive

to refuse + infinitive

ponerse a

to begin to

probar ( o> ue) a + infinitive

to try + infinitive

resignarse a

to resign oneself to

sonar ( o> ue) a

to sound like (something)

subir a

to climb, to go up, or to get on (something)

volver a

to do (something) again

This list contains verbs followed by the preposition de:

acabar de + infinitive

to have just (past tense)

acordarse de

to agree about

alegrarse de

to be happy about

avergonzarse ( o> ue) de

to be ashamed of

cansarse de

to get tired of

cuidar de

to care for (something)