La entrada está cerrada por seguridad.

The entrance is closed for safety.

Breakdown of La entrada está cerrada por seguridad.

• estar: to be
• cerrado: closed
• por: for
• la seguridad: the safety
• la entrada: the entrance

Questions & Answers about La entrada está cerrada por seguridad.

Why does the sentence use está cerrada instead of es cerrada?

In this sentence, está cerrada describes a current, probably temporary state:

• estar + past participle (estar cerrada) = the result/state of an action
  
  • La entrada está cerrada. → The entrance is (currently) closed.

If you said La entrada es cerrada, it sounds like a passive voice meaning “the entrance is closed (by someone)” as a regular or defining action, which is odd in everyday speech here. For signs or explanations about a temporary condition, Spanish normally uses estar with the participle.

So:

• La entrada está cerrada por seguridad. = The entrance is closed (right now) for safety. ✅
• La entrada es cerrada por seguridad. = Grammatically possible as a passive, but sounds unnatural in modern everyday Spanish in this context. ❌

Why is it cerrada and not cerrado?

The adjective cerrada agrees in gender and number with the noun entrada:

• entrada is a feminine singular noun → la entrada
• Therefore the adjective must also be feminine singular → cerrada

If the noun were masculine, it would change:

• El acceso está cerrado. → acceso is masculine → cerrado
• Las entradas están cerradas. → plural feminine → cerradas

In Spanish, adjectives (including past participles used as adjectives) must match the noun in gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural).

Why is it la entrada and not el entrada?

In Spanish, nouns have grammatical gender that you simply have to learn with each word. Entrada is grammatically feminine, so you must use the feminine article la:

• la entrada (feminine)
• el libro (masculine)
• la puerta (feminine)
• el acceso (masculine)

The ending -a often signals a feminine noun, and -o often signals masculine, but there are many exceptions. Here, entrada follows the common pattern of -a → feminine.

What does entrada mean here, and how is it different from other meanings of entrada?

Entrada has several common meanings in Spanish:

1. Entrance / way in → the physical place where you enter a building, area, etc.

   • That’s the meaning in La entrada está cerrada por seguridad.

2. Ticket (for entry to an event: concert, game, cinema, etc.)

   • Compré dos entradas para el concierto.

3. Starter / appetizer (in some countries/contexts)

   • De entrada, vamos a pedir una sopa.

In your sentence, entrada clearly refers to the physical entrance to a place, not a ticket or food. Context usually makes it clear which meaning is intended.

Could I say La puerta está cerrada por seguridad instead? What is the difference between entrada and puerta?

You can say La puerta está cerrada por seguridad, but the meaning changes slightly:

• entrada = the entrance area or access point (could be a gate, set of doors, or the whole way in)
• puerta = a specific door (the panel that opens and closes)

So:

• La entrada está cerrada → The whole entrance/access is closed (maybe a gate, multiple doors, the access path, etc.).
• La puerta está cerrada → A particular door is closed.

On a sign, La entrada está cerrada por seguridad sounds more general and official, like the access route itself is unavailable, not just one door.

Why is it por seguridad and not para seguridad?

Both por and para can relate to reasons/purposes, but they are used differently.

In por seguridad, por expresses reason / cause, similar to “because of / for [the sake of]”:

• por seguridad = for safety reasons / because of safety
• Está cerrado por seguridad. → It’s closed due to safety (concerns).

Para expresses aim, purpose, goal (what something is for), so para seguridad is not idiomatic here.

Compare:

• Cerramos la entrada por seguridad. → The reason we close it is safety. ✅
• Anunciamos nuevas medidas para mejorar la seguridad. → We announce new measures in order to improve safety (goal). ✅

So in this sentence, you want the cause → por, not para.

Why is there no article in por seguridad (not por la seguridad)?

Expressions like por seguridad, por precaución, por miedo, por curiosidad often appear without an article when we talk about an abstract, general concept:

• por seguridad = for (reasons of) safety (in general)
• por precaución = out of caution
• por curiosidad = out of curiosity

You can say por la seguridad, but it sounds more specific, like referring to the safety of a particular group or situation:

• Cerraron la entrada por la seguridad de los alumnos.
  → They closed the entrance for the safety of the students.

In a short notice or sign, the more natural, generic version is por seguridad.

Is está cerrada a passive form, like “is closed,” or is it something else?

Está cerrada looks similar to an English passive, but grammatically it’s usually analyzed as:

• estar + past participle used as an adjective → describing a state/result.

So in La entrada está cerrada, cerrada behaves like an adjective (similar to “shut” in English):

• La entrada está cerrada. → The entrance is in a closed state.

A true passive in Spanish normally uses ser + past participle:

• La entrada fue cerrada por la policía. → The entrance was closed by the police. (Who did the action)

In your sentence, no agent is mentioned, and the focus is on the current state, so estar cerrada is the natural choice.

Could I move por seguridad to another position, like Por seguridad, la entrada está cerrada?

Yes, you can change the word order to adjust emphasis. These are all grammatical:

• La entrada está cerrada por seguridad.
  → Neutral; the usual order; sounds very natural on a sign.

• Por seguridad, la entrada está cerrada.
  → Emphasizes the reason at the beginning: “For safety, the entrance is closed.”

• La entrada, por seguridad, está cerrada.
  → Possible, but sounds slightly more formal or written; also adds a pause around por seguridad.

The most common everyday sign wording is the original: La entrada está cerrada por seguridad.

Does cerrada mean “locked” here, or just “closed”?

Cerrada literally means closed, not necessarily locked.

• La puerta está cerrada. → The door is closed (you can’t assume locked or unlocked from this alone).

If you want to be explicit about “locked,” Spanish usually adds more detail:

• La puerta está cerrada con llave. → The door is locked (closed with a key).
• La entrada está totalmente cerrada. → The entrance is completely closed (no access at all).

On a sign, La entrada está cerrada por seguridad generally communicates no access, but it doesn’t technically say whether it’s locked with a key or not. Context and convention do the rest.

Could the sentence say por su seguridad instead of por seguridad? What is the nuance?

Yes, this is also very common, especially on polite or formal notices:

• La entrada está cerrada por seguridad.
  → The entrance is closed for safety (in general).

• La entrada está cerrada por su seguridad.
  → The entrance is closed for your safety.

Por su seguridad adds:

• A clearer reference to the reader’s / public’s safety, and
• A more polite, customer‑oriented tone, like many public notices.

Both are correct. Por seguridad is a bit more neutral and impersonal; por su seguridad is more explicitly about protecting the people reading the sign.