All Spanish Prepositions Explained with Examples
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Spanish prepositions were one of those things I kept running into without fully understanding. I knew what the words meant in isolation — a means to, de means of, en means in — but in real sentences they kept showing up in ways that didn’t match what I expected.
Por or para? De or a? En or a? The individual meanings weren’t the problem. The patterns were.
What helped wasn’t memorizing a longer list — it was starting with the four that show up everywhere and learning them in real sentences until they felt automatic. Everything else built from there.
That’s the approach this post takes. Core four first, then the rest organized by what they do — location, time, purpose, connection. By the end you’ll have a reference you can actually use.
The Core Four – Start Here
Before anything else, learn these four. They appear in the vast majority of everyday Spanish — and once they’re automatic, the rest of the prepositions make more sense around them.
1. a — to / at
Movement, direction, or the person receiving something.
- Voy a Madrid. — I’m going to Madrid.
- Llamo a Ana. — I call Ana.
- Vamos a comer. — We’re going to eat.
2. de — of / from / about
Possession, origin, and description.
- Es el libro de Juan. — It’s Juan’s book.
- Soy de Argentina. — I’m from Argentina.
- Hablan de la película. — They talk about the movie.
3. en — in / on / at
Location, time, and the idea of being inside something.
- Vivo en España. — I live in Spain.
- El café está en la mesa. — The coffee is on the table.
- Trabajo en la mañana. — I work in the morning.
4. con — with
Companionship or use of a tool.
- Voy con mi familia. — I’m going with my family.
- Corto la pizza con un cuchillo. — I cut the pizza with a knife.
These four alone cover the majority of prepositional phrases in everyday Spanish. Start here before adding anything else.
2. Prepositions of Place – Where Things Happen
These tell you where something is or where something is happening. Learn them alongside the nouns and verbs they connect to.
5. sobre — on / about
El libro está sobre la mesa. — The book is on the table.
6. bajo / debajo de — under
El gato está debajo de la silla. — The cat is under the chair.
7. entre — between
Estoy entre amigos. — I’m among friends.
8. hacia — toward
Caminamos hacia la playa. — We walk toward the beach.
9. tras / detrás de — behind
El coche está detrás de la casa. — The car is behind the house.
10. junto a — next to
Estoy junto a la ventana. — I’m next to the window.
Prepositions of Time – When Things Happen
These place events on a timeline. They show up constantly when people talk about schedules, routines, and plans.
11. antes de — before
Antes de cenar, hablamos. — Before dinner, we talk.
12. después de — after
Después de clase, estudio. — After class, I study.
13. durante — during
Duermo durante la tarde. — I sleep during the afternoon.
14. desde — since / from
Vivo aquí desde 2010. — I’ve lived here since 2010.
Prepositions of Cause and Purpose – Why Things Happen
These are the prepositions that explain motivation, reason, and consequence. Essential for expressing opinions and describing decisions.
15. para — for / in order to / destined for
Use para to show purpose or intention.
- Estudio español para viajar. — I study Spanish to travel.
16. por — because of / through / by
Use por to show cause, exchange, or the means by which something happens.
- Llegué tarde por el tráfico. — I arrived late because of the traffic.
Por vs para is one of the most common points of confusion in Spanish — and it deserves its own attention. The short version: para points forward toward a goal or destination, por points backward toward a cause or reason.
17. a causa de — due to
- Cancelaron la fiesta a causa de la lluvia. — They canceled the party due to the rain.
Prepositions of Connection – Linking Ideas
These connect ideas, people, or things — showing relationships, contrasts, and perspectives.
18. sin — without
No puedo vivir sin café. — I can’t live without coffee.
19. según — according to
Según Ana, es fácil. — According to Ana, it’s easy.
20. contra — against
Estoy contra la idea. — I’m against the idea.
21. sobre — about (as a topic)
Hablamos sobre tus planes. — We talked about your plans.
Verb + Preposition Patterns
Some Spanish verbs pair with specific prepositions — and those pairings don’t always match English. Learn these as fixed combinations rather than trying to apply a rule.
- aprender a — to learn to
Aprendo a conducir. - consistir en — to consist of
El curso consiste en tres partes. - pensar en — to think about
Pienso en ti. - soñar con — to dream about
Sueño con viajar.
English does the same thing — you dream of something or think about something — the prepositions don’t always match across languages. Learn the Spanish pair and move on.
Prepositions + Infinitives
When a preposition is followed by a verb, that verb always stays in the infinitive. No conjugation needed.
- Antes de salir — Before leaving
- Para aprender — In order to learn
- Sin dormir — Without sleeping
- Después de comer — After eating
This is consistent across all prepositions in all contexts. Once you know the rule, you never have to think about it again.
Quick Reference (All Common Prepositions)
| Preposition | Meaning |
|---|---|
| a | to / at |
| ante | before / in front of |
| bajo | under |
| con | with |
| contra | against |
| de | of / from / about |
| desde | from / since |
| durante | during |
| en | in / on / at |
| entre | between |
| hacia | toward |
| hasta | until |
| para | for / in order to |
| por | for / because of / through |
| según | according to |
| sin | without |
| sobre | on / about |
| tras | after / behind |
Closing Thoughts
Prepositions clicked for me when I stopped treating them as isolated vocabulary and started learning them in patterns — the core four first, then the categories, then the verb pairings. Each group has its own logic and once you see that logic the words stop feeling random.
Start with a, de, en, con. Use them in real sentences until they’re automatic. Then add location, time, and purpose prepositions one group at a time. And keep the reference table close for the ones that still trip you up.
They’ll become automatic faster than you expect.
Keep Going →
→ Spanish Sentence Structure / Building Clear Sentences — how conjunctions fit into the bigger picture of building real sentences → How Word Order Works in Spanish — where adverbs fit in the bigger picture of Spanish sentence structure → Spanish Grammar — Start Here — every grammar topic organized in one place
