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Spanish (Spain)

### Fetching things with "a por"

In English, we often say "I am going *for* the groceries" or "I am going *to get* the groceries." In Spain, to express the purpose of going to fetch or retrieve something, use the double preposition *a por*.

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### Verbs of motion

Because *a por* implies movement toward a goal, it pairs perfectly with verbs of motion like *ir* (to go), *venir* (to come), *salir* (to go out), and *bajar* (to go down).

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### Running everyday errands

You will hear *a por* all the time when running an errand (*un encargo*) or fetching household supplies like firewood, animal feed, or a scouring pad.

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Fetching (a por)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

contraction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Singular subjects and 'ser' (yo soy, esto es)

Plural nouns and definite articles (los, las)

Plural pronouns and 'ser' (somos, sois, son)

Adjective agreement (-o, -a, -os, -as)

Indefinite articles (un, una, unos, unas)

Simple negation (no)

Yes/no questions

Regular '-ar' verbs (-o, -as, -a...)

Regular '-er' verbs (-o, -es, -e...)

Regular '-ir' verbs (-o, -es, -e...)

Locative adverbs (aquí, allí)

Question words (quién, cómo)

The verb estar (estoy, estás)

The preposition en (en)

Ser vs. estar

The verb tener (tengo, tienes)

Possessive determiners (mi, tu, su)

Origin and possession (de, del)

The verb ir (voy, vas)

Destination (a, al)

The personal 'a' (a)

Stem-changing verbs: e to ie

Stem-changing verbs: o to ue

Irregular first-person verbs

Reflexive verbs (me, te, se)

Numbers 1 to 10 (uno, dos, tres)

Numbers 11 to 20 (once, doce, trece)

Counting by tens to 100 (treinta, cuarenta, cien)

Compound numbers up to 99 (veintiuno, treinta y uno)

Days of the week (el lunes, el martes)

The family and the personal 'a' (a mi tío, a mi prima)

Months of the year

Telling time (es la, son las)

Verbs of liking (me gusta)

Plural agreement with verbs of liking (gustan)

Degree modifiers (muy, mucho)

Formal address (usted, ustedes)

Direct object pronouns (lo, la, los, las)

The near future (ir a)

Obligation (tener que)

Present continuous (-ando, -iendo)

Affirmative commands (tú, vosotros)

Basic Food and Drink

The Human Body: Head and Arms

The Human Body: Legs and Health

Wardrobe Essentials

Fresh Produce

Meals and Proteins

Public Transport

Hello and goodbye (hola, ¿qué tal?)

Thank you, sorry, OK (gracias, vale)

There is, there are (hay)

My building (la escalera, el ascensor)

Describing people (moreno, rubio, tímido)

Land and sea (el mar, el río, el norte)

Sightseeing (la plaza, la catedral)

Asking the way (cerca, a la derecha, todo recto)

In class (¿puedes repetir?)

Verb + infinitive (quiero comer, sé leer)

What's your name? (me llamo, encantado)

Phone, computer and email

Hundreds and thousands (doscientos, mil)

What do you do? (¿a qué te dedicas?)

Personal details (la edad, la fecha de nacimiento)

Me neither (también, tampoco, ni)

How much is it? (el precio, la vuelta)

What's the weather like? (hace sol, nieva)

Free time (el concierto, el tenis)

At the bar (¿qué vas a tomar?)

The Natural World

Demonstratives (este, ese, aquel)

Prepositions of place (encima de, debajo de)

Prepositional pronouns (para mí, contigo)

Ordinal numbers 1st to 10th (primero to décimo)

Adverbs of frequency (a veces, nunca)

Exclamations (¡qué...!)

Indefinite pronouns (algo, alguien)

Indefinite determiners (algún, ningún)

Indirect object pronouns (le, les)

Double object pronouns (me lo, te la)

Double object pronouns (se lo, se la)

Verbs of preference (encantar, interesar)

Impersonal obligation (hay que)

Starting and finishing actions (empezar a, terminar de)

Adjective comparatives (más que, menos que)

Comparatives of equality (tan como)

Noun comparatives (tanto como)

Question	Answer
for (to go get)	a por
the fabric softener	el suavizante
I am going to the supermarket for the fabric softener.	Voy al supermercado a por el suavizante.
the errand; the order (made to order), the task	el encargo
Yesterday she went down to the street for the order.	Ayer ella bajó a la calle a por el encargo.
We are going to go out for the order now.	Vamos a salir a por el encargo ahora.
I hope you go for the order soon.	Ojalá vayas a por el encargo pronto.
Have you gone to the store for the fabric softener?	¿Has ido a la tienda a por el suavizante?
We are going for the fabric softener so that you can wash.	Vamos a por el suavizante para que laves.
the firewood	la leña
I went to the forest for the firewood yesterday.	Ayer fui al bosque a por la leña.
My sister has come for the firewood.	Mi hermana ha venido a por la leña.
the coal	el carbón
We need to go down for the coal.	Necesitamos bajar a por el carbón.
I am giving you the keys so that you go get the coal.	Te doy las llaves para que vayas a por el carbón.
the spare part	el recambio
My father has gone to the workshop for the spare part.	Mi padre ha ido al taller a por el recambio.
I hope he comes for the spare part today.	Ojalá venga a por el recambio hoy.
the animal feed	el pienso
She got furious because I did not go for the animal feed.	Se puso furiosa porque no fui a por el pienso.
Are you going for the animal feed?	¿Vais a por el pienso?
the scouring pad	el estropajo
I am looking for the keys to go get the scouring pad.	Busco las llaves para ir a por el estropajo.
He got nervous and went for the scouring pad.	Se puso nervioso y fue a por el estropajo.
the lighter	el encendedor
Last night we came to the kitchen for the lighter.	Anoche vinimos a la cocina a por el encendedor.
They are coming back for the lighter.	Vuelven a por el encendedor.
the chalk	la tiza
The teacher has gone to the classroom for the chalk.	La profesora ha ido a la clase a por la tiza.
I have to go get the chalk so that they can write.	Tengo que ir a por la tiza para que escriban.

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