Para no suspender de nuevo, pongo el despertador media hora antes.

To avoid failing again, I set the alarm clock half an hour earlier.

Breakdown of Para no suspender de nuevo, pongo el despertador media hora antes.

• yo: I
• para: to
• medio: half
• la hora: the hour
• no: not
• suspender: to fail
• de nuevo: again
• poner: to set
• el despertador: the alarm clock
• antes: earlier

Questions & Answers about Para no suspender de nuevo, pongo el despertador media hora antes.

Why do we use para no suspender de nuevo (with para + infinitive) rather than para que no suspenda de nuevo (with para que + subjunctive)?

Because the subject of both actions is the same person (the speaker). When the subject doesn’t change between the main clause and the purpose clause, Spanish uses para + infinitive. You only use para que + subjunctive if the subjects differ.

Why isn’t yo used before pongo?

Spanish often omits subject pronouns because the verb ending already indicates who’s acting. pongo is first-person singular (“I set”), so adding yo would be redundant (though grammatically possible for emphasis).

What’s the difference between suspender de nuevo, suspender otra vez, and volver a suspender?

All three mean “to fail again.”

• suspender de nuevo and suspender otra vez place an adverb after the verb; they’re interchangeable.
• volver a suspender uses volver a
  • infinitive to express repetition.
    There’s no significant difference in meaning—just stylistic preference.

What does media hora antes mean, and why don’t we say una media hora antes, medio hora antes, or antes media hora?

• media hora = “half an hour,” antes = “earlier.” Together media hora antes = “half an hour earlier.”
• We drop una because media already implies half of one unit.
• We use media (feminine) to agree with hora, not medio.
• Spanish typically places measure phrases (like media hora) before time adverbs (like antes), so media hora antes is the natural order.

Why do we say pongo el despertador instead of me pongo el despertador to mean “I set the alarm”?

Here poner is transitive: el despertador is the direct object you’re setting. You’re changing the clock’s state, not acting on yourself, so no reflexive pronoun is needed. me pongo el despertador isn’t standard for “I set the alarm.”

Why do we use para and not por in para no suspender de nuevo?

para expresses purpose (“in order not to fail again”). por would express cause or motive (“because of not failing”), which doesn’t match the intended meaning of prevention.

Why is there a comma after Para no suspender de nuevo?

Because Para no suspender de nuevo is an introductory subordinate clause (stating purpose). In Spanish, introductory clauses are separated from the main clause by a comma.