Breakdown of Para su defensa, ese oso y ese lobo se atacan el uno al otro.
su
his/her/its/their/your (formal)
ese
that (masculine)
al
to the
para
for
uno
one
otro
other
el oso
bear
el lobo
wolf
se
each other (reciprocal)
atacar
to attack
la defensa
defense
Questions & Answers about Para su defensa, ese oso y ese lobo se atacan el uno al otro.
Why do we add el uno al otro if se atacan already means 'they attack each other'?
The pronoun se can mean 'themselves' (reflexive) or 'each other' (reciprocal). By itself, se atacan could technically mean 'they attack themselves.' Adding el uno al otro removes this ambiguity, making it crystal clear they are attacking one another.
Why is it el uno al otro and not another form like la una a la otra?
Where does the al come from in el uno al otro?
The word al is a required contraction of the preposition a and the article el. In reciprocal phrases, the second half always uses the personal a because the 'other' is receiving the action. When a is followed by el, they combine into al.
Why use Para instead of Por at the beginning of the sentence?
We use Para here because it shows a goal or purpose ('in order to defend themselves'). If you used Por, it would sound like they are attacking each other on behalf of a defense, rather than defense being their intended goal.
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