We use prepositions to link two or more elements in a sentence.  These elements could be words, like nouns or pronouns, or they could be phrases too.  In Spanish, these can be simple, one-word prepositions, (“a”, “hacia”, “de”, “en”… ) or compound, two or three-word prepositions, (“al lado de”, “enfrente de”, “a la izquierda”…). 

Below you will find a list of the most common and important prepositions in Spanish. Notice that there are translations given, but as you’ll see, in some cases, there is no direct translation to English.  

* Prepositions “a” and “de” are combined with the article “el” and make one word:

To ask and say where people, places, or things are we use “¿Dónde?” (Where?), “estar” (the verb “to be” for location) in the singular (“está”) or the plural form (“están”) and prepositions.

Have you studied these prepositions? Do you know them well? Test yourself with this prepositions quiz below.

In this lesson, we gave you a list of prepositions, 18 to be exact.  This list includes examples of some of the most common prepositions, like “a”, “de”, “en” and “con”, as well as important prepositions of place, such as “debajo de”, or “enfrente de”. Remember, prepositions can be a single word, or two words (called compound prepositions).  If you haven’t looked at other parts of speech, like Adjectives in Spanish, then we’d recommend doing that now.  Otherwise, try studying some of our vocabulary topics, like Home and Household or Everyday Objects.