{"id":142672,"date":"2023-12-16T18:20:56","date_gmt":"2023-12-16T23:20:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/spanish-prepositions-of-place\/"},"modified":"2025-01-25T04:59:39","modified_gmt":"2025-01-25T09:59:39","slug":"spanish-prepositions-of-place","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/spanish\/spanish-prepositions-of-place\/","title":{"rendered":"25 Prepositions of Place in Spanish (Plus Example Sentences)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Spanish prepositions of place like debajo de<\/em> (under) show you where something exists or is happening.<\/p>\n

These small words are an important part of the language, and using them can add meaning and clarity<\/strong> to your Spanish conversations<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Read on to find 25 essential prepositions of place in Spanish<\/strong>, as well as some useful practice resources!<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

What Are Spanish Prepositions and How Do You Use Them?<\/h2>\n

So what exactly are Spanish prepositions<\/a>?<\/p>\n

As mentioned above, a preposition is a word that indicates information about location, place or movement.<\/strong> It also provides a link between different parts of sentences.<\/p>\n

Prepositions commonly show a spatial (relating to place) relationship<\/strong> but can also indicate time relationships,<\/strong> too.<\/p>\n

A preposition generally goes before nouns or pronouns in sentences. It shows where an item is or when an event occurred, often in relation to another item or event (“I’m on top of the world!”).<\/p>\n

I’m sure you’re familiar with prepositions like within, toward, on and under.<\/strong> Those prepositions are used all the time when we speak English. And they’re used when we speak Spanish<\/a>, too!<\/p>\n

Understanding de <\/em>and del<\/em><\/h3>\n

Before we go on, here’s a special note about a very useful Spanish word: de\u00a0<\/em>(of, from) is a multi-purpose preposition.<\/strong> It may be the most commonly used preposition because it\u2019s used both alone and in conjunction with other prepositions.<\/p>\n

You might notice that some of the prepositions in our list below actually use del<\/em>\u00a0instead of\u00a0de.<\/em>\u00a0Del<\/em> is a contraction that means “of the”\/\u201cfrom the”<\/strong> and it’s formed by combining\u00a0de<\/em> and the definite article<\/a> el\u00a0<\/em>(the).\u00a0This is used to\u00a0indicate something is of, from or in some cases even about or by something.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s see what prepositions of place we\u2019ve got available to us\u2014and check out how they\u2019re used!<\/p>\n

Spanish Prepositions of Place<\/h2>\n

Below, you’ll find some of the most common prepositions of place in Spanish with example sentences.<\/p>\n

A<\/em> (To)<\/h3>\n

Ella fue a<\/strong> la tienda.<\/em> (She went to<\/strong> the store.)<\/p>\n

Remember that when placed before a masculine word,\u00a0a<\/em> turns into al<\/em>\u00a0in the same way that\u00a0de<\/em> turns into\u00a0del:<\/em><\/p>\n

Ella fue al<\/strong>\u00a0banco.<\/em> (She went to<\/strong> the<\/strong> bank.)<\/p>\n

A la derecha de<\/em> (To the right of)<\/h3>\n

El gato est\u00e1 a la derecha del<\/strong> perro.<\/em> (The cat is to the right<\/strong> of the dog.)<\/p>\n

A la izquierda de<\/em> (To the left of)<\/h3>\n

El le\u00f3n est\u00e1 a la izquierda del<\/strong> perro.<\/em> (The lion is to the left<\/strong> of the dog.)<\/p>\n

A trav\u00e9s de<\/em> (Across, Through)<\/h3>\n

El vaquero cabalg\u00f3\u00a0a trav\u00e9s del<\/strong> desierto.<\/em> (The cowboy rode across the desert.)<\/p>\n

Al lado de<\/em> (Next to)<\/h3>\n

La escuela est\u00e1 al lado del<\/strong> hospital.<\/em> (The school is next to<\/strong> the hospital.)<\/p>\n

Alrededor de<\/em> (About, Around)<\/h3>\n

Caminamos alrededor<\/strong> de la cuadra.<\/em> (We walked around<\/strong> the block.)<\/p>\n

Bajo<\/em> (Under)<\/h3>\n

Nos sentamos bajo<\/strong> la sombra de un \u00e1rbol.<\/em> (We sat under<\/strong> the shade of a tree.)<\/p>\n

Cerca de<\/em> (Near)<\/h3>\n

Mi auto est\u00e1 cerca de<\/strong> un parque.<\/em> (My car is near<\/strong> a park.)<\/p>\n

De<\/em> (From)<\/h3>\n

\u00c9l es de<\/strong> Espa\u00f1a.<\/em> (He\u2019s from<\/strong> Spain.)<\/p>\n

Estoy a dos metros de<\/strong> la entrada.<\/em> (I’m two meters away from<\/strong>\u00a0the entrance.)<\/p>\n

Debajo de<\/em> (Under)<\/h3>\n

You can also use abajo de.<\/em><\/p>\n

Las focas juegan debajo del<\/strong> agua.<\/em> (The seals play under<\/strong> the water.)<\/p>\n

Delante de<\/em> (In front of)<\/h3>\n

You can also use adelante de<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Cantamos delante del<\/strong> p\u00fablico.<\/em> (We sang in front<\/strong> of<\/strong>\u00a0the<\/strong> crowd.)<\/p>\n

Dentro de<\/em> (In, Inside, Within)<\/h3>\n

You can also use adentro de.<\/em><\/p>\n

Estamos dentro de<\/strong> la tienda.<\/em> (We’re inside<\/strong> the store.)<\/p>\n

Desde<\/em> (From)<\/h3>\n

\u00bfDesde<\/strong> d\u00f3nde saldr\u00e1 nuestro avi\u00f3n?<\/em> (Where will our plane depart from<\/strong>?)<\/p>\n

Detr\u00e1s de<\/em> (Behind)<\/h3>\n

You can also use atr\u00e1s de.<\/em><\/p>\n

El perro est\u00e1 escondido detr\u00e1s de<\/strong> ese\u00a0\u00e1rbol.<\/em> (The dog is hiding behind<\/strong> that tree.)<\/p>\n

En<\/em> (In, On, At)<\/h3>\n

We have several different prepositions when we talk about location within limits, like “in,” “on,” or “at.” In Spanish, however, you can use en<\/em> in (almost) every case where you would need either of those three in English. Take a look at the examples below:<\/p>\n

Me quedar\u00e9\u00a0en<\/strong> el auto.<\/em> (I will stay in<\/strong> the car.)<\/p>\n

Las llaves est\u00e1n en<\/strong> la mesa.<\/em> (The keys are on<\/strong> the table.)<\/p>\n

Me aburro cuando estoy en<\/strong> casa.<\/em> (I get bored when I’m at<\/strong> home.)<\/p>\n

Encontr\u00e9 la informaci\u00f3n en<\/strong> Internet.<\/em> (I found the information on<\/strong> the internet.)<\/p>\n

Encima de<\/em> (On top of)<\/h3>\n

El gato se duerme encima del <\/strong>armario.<\/em> (The cat sleeps on top of<\/strong> the closet.)<\/p>\n

En frente de<\/em> (In front of)<\/h3>\n

Sometimes you may find this preposition being spelled enfrente de<\/em>. Both spellings are acceptable. You can also use frente a.<\/em><\/p>\n

Hay una f\u00e1brica en frente de<\/strong> mi casa.<\/em> (There is a factory in front of<\/strong>\u00a0my house.)<\/p>\n

En medio de<\/em> (In the middle of)<\/h3>\n

Construyeron una casa en medio de<\/strong> la nada.<\/em> (They built a house in the middle of<\/strong> nowhere.)<\/p>\n

Entre<\/em> (Between, Among)<\/h3>\n

Encontr\u00e9 una carta entre<\/strong> esos dos libros.<\/em> (I found a letter between those two books.)<\/p>\n

Hay un esp\u00eda entre<\/strong> los invitados.<\/em> (There’s a spy among<\/strong> the guests.)<\/p>\n

Fuera de<\/em> (Outside, Out of)<\/h3>\n

You can also use afuera de<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Quiero ir fuera de <\/strong>la ciudad.<\/em> (I want to go out of<\/strong> the city.)<\/p>\n

Hacia<\/em> (Toward)<\/h3>\n

Caminamos hacia<\/strong> la banca.<\/em> (We walked toward the bench.)<\/p>\n

Hasta<\/em> ([Up] To, Until)<\/h3>\n

No nos detendremos hasta<\/strong> Toledo.<\/em> (We won’t stop until<\/strong> Toledo.)<\/p>\n

Disculpe, \u00bfeste tren va hasta<\/strong> C\u00f3rdoba?<\/em> (Excuse me, does this train go to<\/strong> Cordoba?)<\/p>\n

Por<\/em> (Around, By, Through)<\/h3>\n

Don’t confuse this use of the word\u00a0por<\/em> (by, through) with por\u00a0<\/em>(for)<\/a>!<\/p>\n

Los alumnos caminaban por<\/strong> la biblioteca.<\/em> (The students walked around<\/strong> the library.)<\/p>\n

Estar\u00e9 por la entrada.<\/em> (I’ll be by<\/strong> the entrance.)<\/p>\n

El gato se meti\u00f3 por<\/strong> la ventana.<\/em> (The cat got in through<\/strong> the window.)<\/p>\n

Sobre<\/em> (On)<\/h3>\n

We use sobre<\/em> for objects on surfaces, just in the same way we use “on”:<\/p>\n

Hay una mosca sobre<\/strong> la pared.<\/em> (There’s a fly on the wall.)<\/p>\n

We can also use en<\/em> for cases like these, though:<\/p>\n

Hay una mosca en<\/strong> la pared.<\/em><\/p>\n

Tras<\/em> (Behind)<\/h3>\n

El ladr\u00f3n ahora est\u00e1 tras<\/strong> las rejas.<\/em> (The burglar is behind<\/strong> bars now.)<\/p>\n

How to Practice Spanish Prepositions of Place<\/h2>\n

Now that you\u2019ve got an assortment of prepositions available to pull into your Spanish program, you\u2019ll want to get some practice time in<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

There are great resources to help you get your prepositions in order. And the best part is that they’re fun to work with. Let’s check them out!<\/p>\n