Severn Spanish

Por vs. Para II/III

 

 

Introduction

Typically translated as “for,” these two words have a ton of different meanings and are used in very different circumstances. Like ser and estar, preterite and imperfect, and saber and conocer, English speakers have trouble deciding which to use because we are so used to having only one option instead of two.

 

Para

Purpose/destination

Para is generally used to talk about purpose and destination.  In other words, the reason for something, the place someone is going, or the recipient of something.

Examples:

La comida es para mañana. (The food is for tomorrow.)

El hombre compró los aretes para su esposa. (The man bought the earrings for his wife.)

El jueves salimos para Madrid. (On Thursday we are leaving for Madrid.)

 

In order to

Para can also mean "in order to."

Examples:

Estudiamos para tener éxito en el examen. (We study in order to be successful on the test.)

Jorge lee el diario para enterarse de los eventos importantes del mundo. (Jorge reads the newspaper in order to find out about the important events in the world.)

 

Por

Because

Por can mean “because of” or “on behalf of.”

Examples:

Los niños fueron al mercado por su mamá. (The boys went to the store for/on behalf of their mother.)

El libro me interesa por su tratamiento de la historia. (The book interests me because of its treatment of history.)

El perro se murió por falta de comida. (The dog died for lack of food.)

 

By/through

Por can also mean “by” or “through.”

Examples:

Caminamos por el jardín. (We walked through the garden.)

Por estudiar, puedes recibir una A en la clase de matemáticas. (By studying, you can receive an A in math class.)

El libro, escrito por Miguel de Cervantes, es muy gracioso. (The book, written by Miguel de Cervantes, is very funny.)

 

Exchanges and trades

Por is used for exchanges. Note that pagar ("to pay") does not require por after it. It would be incorrect to say "Pago por la comida." The correct sentence is "Pago la comida."

Examples:

Compré el auto por $5,000. (I bought the car for $5,000.)

 

Duration

Por is used to tell for how long something happened.

Examples:

Ella bailó por dos horas. (She danced for two hours.)

 

Per

Por is used to say “per;” a common example is to talk about speed (how fast cars are going, for instance).

Examples:

Leo el diario siete veces por semana. (I read the newspaper seven times a week.)

El auto puede alcanzar una velocidad de doscientos cincuenta kilómetros por hora. (The car can reach a velocity of 250 kilometers per hour.)

 

Common Problems

Sometimes, a sentence could use either por or para, with each version meaning something slightly different. Here are some examples:

Él compró un libro para ella. (“He bought a book for her.” The idea is that he bought it to give to her.)

Él compró un libro por ella. (“He bought a book on her behalf/for her.” Here, the idea is that he bought it for her because she was for some reason unable to.)

 

Salimos por la puerta. ("We leave through the door," or "We leave by means of the door."

Salimos para Madrid. ("We leave for Madrid.")