Mi hermana usa el abono de cercanías cuando hace prácticas lejos de la universidad.

In Spanish, a possessive like mi, tu, su, nuestro normally replaces the article.

So you say:

• mi hermana
• tu coche
• su casa

not:

• la mi hermana
• el tu coche

Using both together is not normal in modern standard Spanish in this kind of sentence.

Usa is the normal choice for a habitual or repeated action.

Here, the sentence describes what she generally does whenever that situation happens, not what she is doing right now at this exact moment.

So:

• usa = she uses / she usually uses
• está usando = she is using right now

In this sentence, the idea is more like a routine, so usa fits better.

In Spain, abono often means a travel pass or season ticket for public transport.

Cercanías refers to commuter trains, especially the local/suburban rail network associated with Renfe in many cities.

So abono de cercanías means a commuter-train pass, not just any ticket.

A learner should notice that abono in everyday Spanish can have different meanings depending on context, but with transport it commonly means pass or season ticket.

Because de is commonly used in Spanish to classify or identify what type of thing something is.

So:

• abono de cercanías = a commuter-rail pass
• billete de tren = a train ticket
• tarjeta de transporte = a transport card

Using para would suggest purpose more directly, but here Spanish normally uses de to name the category of the pass.

Because hacer prácticas is a fixed expression in Spanish meaning to do an internship, to do work placement, or to be in practical training.

Even though English might use a verb like intern or a phrase like do an internship, Spanish often uses hacer with many activity nouns:

• hacer ejercicio
• hacer una prueba
• hacer prácticas

So hace prácticas is very natural.

Because in this meaning, Spanish usually uses the plural prácticas as part of the set expression hacer prácticas.

It often refers to internship training, placements, or practical work experience, even if in English you might think of it as one single internship.

So the plural is idiomatic here. It is just how Spanish normally says it.

Yes. Estar de prácticas is another very common way to express that someone is doing an internship or placement.

There is a slight difference in feel:

• hace prácticas focuses on the activity
• está de prácticas focuses on her current status or situation

Both are natural, but hacer prácticas works very well in this sentence.

Because this sentence talks about a repeated or general situation: whenever she does internships far from the university, she uses that pass.

In Spanish, when cuando refers to something habitual or general, the present tense is normal:

• Cuando llueve, me quedo en casa.
• Cuando tengo tiempo, leo.
• Cuando hace prácticas lejos de la universidad, usa el abono de cercanías.

If it were about a future event, Spanish would often still use the present after cuando:

• Cuando haga prácticas... is possible in more specific contexts, but that changes the nuance and structure.

Here the plain present works because it describes a usual pattern.

Because lejos de is the normal structure when you say something is far from a place.

Examples:

• lejos de casa
• lejos del centro
• lejos de la universidad

You can say just lejos if the reference point is already obvious:

• Vive lejos.

But if you mention the place you are far from, Spanish normally uses de.

Spanish often uses the definite article where English might prefer a possessive.

Here, la universidad is understood as the relevant university in the context, probably the one she attends or is associated with.

So both can be possible depending on context:

• lejos de la universidad = far from the university
• lejos de su universidad = far from her university

Using la universidad sounds natural when the reference is already clear. Spanish does this a lot with body parts, clothing, and familiar context items, and also with institutions or places that are obvious from the situation.

It depends on whether you mean the general type of service or the official brand name.

• cercanías in lowercase can be used generically for commuter rail
• Cercanías with a capital letter may be used when referring to the official Renfe network/brand

In everyday writing, many people write abono de cercanías in lowercase, especially in a general sentence like this. But in official or brand-focused contexts, you may see Cercanías.

The given word order is very natural, but Spanish allows some flexibility.

For example, you could also say:

• Cuando hace prácticas lejos de la universidad, mi hermana usa el abono de cercanías.

This puts the time/situation clause first and gives it a bit more emphasis.

The original version is perfectly normal:

• subject + verb + object + time clause

So the word order is not completely fixed, but the original sentence sounds very natural and neutral.

Because Spanish usually uses the definite article when referring to a specific thing or a known category in context.

Here, el abono de cercanías means the commuter-rail pass as the thing she uses in that situation.

Spanish uses articles more often than English in many cases, so even if English might just say she uses a commuter pass or the commuter pass depending on context, Spanish often naturally includes el here.

It sounds complete and idiomatic:

• usa el abono de cercanías

Without the article, the phrase would sound unnatural in this sentence.