Learn Hardcore Spanish (Latin America): Durante la boda, brindamos por la pareja y por su futuro. - During the wedding, we toast to the couple and to their future.

It can be either. Brindamos is both first-person plural present (we toast) and preterite (we toasted). The time phrase Durante la boda makes the past reading the most natural: we toasted during the wedding.

Why not brindábamos?

Brindamos (preterite) presents a completed event. Brindábamos (imperfect) would mean we were toasting/used to toast, focusing on the ongoing or habitual nature, not a single completed act.

Why is it brindar por and not brindar a/para?

With toasts, Spanish uses the fixed pattern brindar por alguien/algo. Brindar a or brindar para in this sense sounds wrong. Examples: Brindemos por los novios. Brindamos por la paz.

Can I drop the second por and say brindamos por la pareja y su futuro?

Yes. Repeating por is optional. Brindamos por la pareja y su futuro is natural; brindamos por la pareja y por su futuro adds a bit of clarity or emphasis.

Could para ever work in por su futuro?

Not in a toast. The verb demands por to mark the object of the toast. Para su futuro would express purpose/goal, which doesn’t fit the toasting construction.

Why Durante la boda and not En la boda?

Both are possible. Durante highlights the time span within which something happened; En is a more neutral “at/in.” Here, Durante la boda slightly emphasizes timing, but En la boda would also be fine.

Is Mientras la boda correct?

No. Mientras must introduce a clause with a verb: Mientras bailábamos, brindamos. To modify a noun phrase, use durante: Durante la boda.

Why the article la in la boda?

Spanish typically uses the definite article with specific events. You’re referring to a particular wedding, so la boda is expected. Omitting the article here sounds odd.

Does la pareja being feminine mean the couple is female?

No. Pareja is a grammatically feminine noun regardless of the couple’s genders. It doesn’t imply anything about the people’s gender.

What exactly does su refer to in por su futuro, and why not sus?

Su agrees with the possessed noun, futuro (singular), not with the possessor. It can mean his/her/their. Here it means the couple’s future. To avoid ambiguity, you can say por el futuro de la pareja or por su futuro juntos. Use sus only if the possessed noun is plural (e.g., sus planes).

Could I say los novios instead of la pareja?

Yes. Los novios specifically refers to the bride and groom (or the engaged couple) in the wedding context. La pareja is more general. After the ceremony, you may also hear los esposos or los recién casados.

Is there a noun for “a toast”?

Yes: un brindis. You often say hacer un brindis: Durante la boda, hicimos un brindis por la pareja.

How is brindar conjugated in the preterite?

Yo brindé, tú brindaste, él/ella/usted brindó, nosotros brindamos, ustedes/ellos/ellas brindaron.

Why is it y and not e before por su futuro?

The conjunction changes to e only before words starting with the vowel sound i (i-/hi-), like e hijos. Futuro starts with f, so y is correct.

Is the comma after Durante la boda required?

It’s optional. After a short introductory time phrase, Spanish can omit the comma: Durante la boda brindamos… Including it is also acceptable for clarity.

Are there regional synonyms for boda in Latin America?

Yes. Boda is universally understood, but in parts of the Southern Cone (e.g., Argentina, Uruguay) casamiento is common: Durante el casamiento, brindamos…

Does brindar only mean “to toast”?

No. Without por, brindar can mean “to offer/provide,” especially in Latin America: La organización brinda apoyo a las familias. With por, it means “to toast.”