In the last lesson you saw conozco *a un actor. That little *a is the "personal a" — one of the most characteristic features of Spanish.
| personal 'a' (marks a human direct object) | a |
People take a
When the direct object of a verb is a specific person, Spanish puts a right before it. English translates it with nothing at all — it has no meaning of its own; it simply marks that the object is a person.
| I see my friend in the park. | Veo a mi amiga en el parque. |
| The boy helps his grandmother. | El niño ayuda a su abuela. |
| I know my wife's family. | Conozco a la familia de mi esposa. |
Things do not take a
The same verb drops the a when its object is a thing. Compare:
| I see my friend's house. | Veo la casa de mi amiga. |
| I need my mom. | Necesito a mi mamá. |
| I need the phone. | Necesito el teléfono. |
a + el becomes al
The contraction you learned with al and del applies to the personal a too:
| I listen to the famous singer. | Escucho al cantante famoso. |
Pets count as people
Animals you care about also take the personal a:
| The girl looks at her cat. | La niña mira a su gato. |
Asking "whom?"
Because the person is marked with a, the question word carries it along: ¿A quién...?
| Whom are you helping today? | ¿A quién ayudas hoy? |
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