El dinar és al microones, però la carn encara és al congelador.

Lunch is in the microwave, but the meat is still in the freezer.

Breakdown of El dinar és al microones, però la carn encara és al congelador.

• ser: to be
• a: in
• però: but
• el dinar: the lunch

Questions & Answers about El dinar és al microones, però la carn encara és al congelador.

Why is al used twice, and what exactly does it mean?

Al is a contraction of a + el:

• a = to / at / in
• el = the

So:

• al microones = in the microwave
• al congelador = in the freezer

This is very common in Catalan. Compare:

• a la nevera = in the fridge
• al forn = in the oven
• al cotxe = in the car

So al is not a separate dictionary word you usually learn by itself; it is just the normal contracted form of a + el.

Why does the sentence use és instead of està for location?