Adverbial Expressions in Spanish w/ a
Iâm working on a big post mini-series about different prepositions in Spanish, and I was working on the one for a and there are just so many adverbial expressions that use a so I decided to make this its own post so itâs not one GIGANTIC wall of text when I finish talking about everything that the preposition a is used for.
And if youâd like to go support me and what I do over on Patreon that would be lovely and greatly appreciated!
Anyway, here are some of the most common expressions I know of that use aÂ
Some of these are idioms, some are compound words. Most compound words with a indicate a kind of directionality or an intention. For example la regla is âruleâ or ârulerâ, and arreglar is âto fixâ but in that sense itâs âto set in orderâ or more literally âto set according to how it should be / to set according to the ruleâ... things like that are very common with Spanish.
And as we all know Iâm garbage at proofreading my own things so bear with me on this and if you see a typo or mistake, let me know.
a veces = sometimes, at times
a ver = âletâs seeâ, âwell thenâ
[commonly misspelled as haber which is a totally different thing]
a simple vista = âat first sightâ, âoneâs first impressionâ
e.g. a simple vista parece que... = at first glance it appears that...
a la vez = at the same time, simultaneously
a pie = on foot, walking
e.g. ir a pie = to go on foot
a salvo = safe / safe and sound
e.g. estar a salvo = to be unharmed
al grano = âdown to businessâ
e.g. vamos al grano = letâs get down to business / letâs not waste time
a la izquierda = to the left / on the left-hand side
a la derecha = to the right / on the right-hand side
a través de = through / going through
atravesar = to go through, to traverse
(hacia) atrĂĄs = going backwards
abajo = going under / lower
arriba = going up / higher up
manos a la obra = âletâs get to workâ
al dedillo = âby heartâ, âfrom memoryâ
a bordo = aboard, on board
a caballo = on horseback, riding a horse
a nombre de (alguien) = in someoneâs name, under someoneâs name
ÂżA nombre de quĂen? = âIn whose name?â or âWhoâs the reservation for?â; this expression is used for things that are registered or reserved for someone. This would be what someone asks if you went to a restaurant or a hotel and asked you under whose name the reservation was made. Itâs also something youâd see on licences and registrations for vehicles or leases, that kind of thing. If someone asks you this at a hotel, you would be giving them your name or the name of whoever youâre booking the room for that would show up on the registry.
a mi manera = âmy wayâ [can be used with other possessives]
ej: lo hice a mi manera = I did it my way
a flor de piel = lit. â(as if) flowerâs skinâ
This expression is used in the sense of âvery noticeableâ or âon the surfaceâ. It would be how youâd translate something like⊠tener los sentimientos a flor de piel âto be very sensitiveâ or âto wear oneâs heart on oneâs sleeveâ.
Youâd also see a flor de piel to be like ârunning highâ or âin the airâ, in the sense of something is easily perceived.
a toda costa = at all cost
a cualquier precio = no matter the price
a ciegas = blindly, stumbling, without knowing, in the dark
a espaldas (de alguien) = behind someoneâs back
e.g. hablar a espaldas de alguien = to talk behind someoneâs back
a solas = one-on-one, in private
This is said of two people alone most often.
ej: Quiero hablar contigo a solas. = I want to talk to you in private. / I want to talk to you one-on-one
mano a mano = hand-to-hand
cuerpo a cuerpo = melee [fighting style; las armas de cuerpo a cuerpo would be âmelee weaponsâ etc]
a consecuencia de = due to [sometimes you see por consiguiente or como resultado as synonyms, âthereforeâ and âas a resultâ]
al lado de alguien = on someoneâs side
[can be literally âbesideâ in the sense of direction, or it could be something like te necesito a mi lado âI need you on my sideâ or âI need you in my cornerâ in the sense of support]
a corto plazo = short-term
a largo plazo = long-term
a domicilio = delivery
e.g. clases a domicilio âhome schoolingâ, comida a domicilio âtake-out foodâ, entrega a domicilio âdelivered to your houseâ, mĂ©dico/a a domicilio âa doctor who makes house callsâ
al aire libre = in the open air / open-air
al fresco = outside
afuera = (going) outside / out
a fin de = for the purposes of, in order to
a diferencia de (algo/alguien) = unlike
ej: a diferencia de tu hermana, eres⊠= unlike your sister, youâreâŠ
a distancia = from a distance, at a distance
al cabo = to the end / finishing, in summation
a secas = only, just [in some contexts a secas means âin a blunt wayâ or âwithout mincing wordsâ]
a estas alturas = at this point, at this juncture
ej: A estas alturas, no tenemos otra opciĂłn. = At this point we have no other choice.
a duras penas = hardly, barely
apenas = hardly, barely
a tientas = fumbling, going by feel or touch
a diestro y siniestro = all over the place
[lit. âto the right and leftâ where diestro/a âable/dexterousâ is the old word for ârightâ derecho/a, and siniestro/a âsinisterâ is the old word for âleftâ izquierdo/a]
a la deriva = adrift, drifting
a cuestas = on someoneâs back / piggyback
al principio, al inicio = at the beginning
al final, al fin = at the end
a medias = halfway, partway / half-assed
[in context this means âdone halfwayâ, or in an accusatory way itâs saying that someone âhalf-assedâ something so it depends on proper context... you can see no hace las cosas a medias as in âhe/she doesnât do things halfwayâ meaning âhe/she gives their allâ]
(mantener algo/alguien) a raya = (to keep something/someone) in line, at bay
a menos que = unless [this takes subjunctive]
a partir de = starting from
ej: a partir de hoy⊠= from today on(wards)âŠ
a propĂłsito = on purpose, deliberately
adrede = on purpose [sort of the same, just a little more accusatory]
a la larga = âin the long runâ
a la ligera = âlightlyâ
e.g. tomar(se) algo a la ligera = to take something lightly
a mano = by hand, manually / on hand, nearby
a lo mejor = maybe, perhaps
a medida = tailored, custom-made
a pesar de (que) = despite, in spite of [takes subjunctive]
a punto de = just about to, at the point of
e.g. estar a punto de explotar = to be just about to explode
estar a punto de hervir = to be about to boil
a posteriori = in hindsight
aprisa, a prisa = hurrying [as a command you can say it like âhurry upâ, same with deprisa or you might see it as a command like date prisa where darse prisa is âto hurryâ]
a toda prisa = as fast as possible, as fast as you can
a primera vista = at first sight
a raudales = in abundance, overflowing [not super common but you never know; more common is estar repleto/a de or estar lleno/a de or using a verb like rebosar]
a primera hora = first thing in the morning, âbright and earlyâ
a plena luz de dĂa = in broad daylight
a cuadros = checkered, gingham [pattern]
a lunares = polka dot [pattern]
a rayas = striped [pattern]
a rombos / de rombos = argyle / diamond-shape pattern
Your clothing you might see a or de used here, but it works like this⊠quiero una camisa a rayas âI want a striped shirtâ or quiero una camisa a lunares âI want a polka dot shirtâ. You do see sometimes that itâs de but saying un traje a rayas or una traje de rayas (finas) for âa pinstripe suitâ is pretty similar.
Important note: a is used a lot in culinary things the same way youâd see it with French or Italian, where it means âdone in the style ofâ. In that case, itâs hard to translate it very literally.
gambas al ajillo = âshrimp/prawns in garlic and olive oilâ
pulpo a la gallega = âGalician-style octopusâ
calamar a la romana = âRoman-style squidâ
al horno = âoven-bakedâ [in Italian al forno]
a la carta = a la carte [French]
al pastor = âshepherd-styleâ
a la rusa = âRussian-styleâ [usually âstroganoffâ]
papas/patatas a la alemana =Â âGerman-style potatoesâ / German potato salad
In some cases itâs not just food. For example the expression despedirse a la francesa which is literally âsaying goodbye the French wayâ means âto leave without telling anyone youâre goingâ
Or, you might see something called el servicio a la rusa which is âRussian-style serviceâ or el servicio a la inglesa âEnglish-style serviceâ which refer to a fancier kind of dinner service where an attendant or server will cut portions for you and serve you that way instead of you helping yourself.
Some might require more explanation like... a la amazona which is âside-saddleâ. Literally, this is âin Amazon-styleâ. But, la amazona is also a female rider / âhorsewomanâ, being the female equivalent of el jinete âhorsemanâ. In that sense, a la amazona means âas a horsewoman doesâ aka âside-saddleâ, because women used to montar a la amazona âto ride side-saddleâÂ