Question 1

Why do we use por mar instead of en mar to mean "by sea"?

Accepted Answer

In Spanish, when you want to express the general means or route of transportation, you use the preposition por. You will often see phrases like por mar (by sea), por aire (by air), or por tierra (by land). Notice that we use en for being physically inside something, which is why the sentence says en el contenedor (in the container).

Question 2

Why is there no article before mar? Shouldn't it be por el mar?

Accepted Answer

When referring to a mode of transport or a general route, Spanish drops the article, just like English does with "by sea". If you said por el mar, it would sound more like you are traveling physically through the specific sea rather than just describing the shipping method.

Question 3

Could I put ya after the verb, like ha llegado ya?

Accepted Answer

Yes, you can! In Spanish, ya (already) is quite flexible. You can put it before the verb (ya ha llegado), at the end of the phrase (ha llegado ya), or even at the very beginning of the sentence. Just remember that you cannot put it between the two parts of the verb (ha and llegado).

Question 4

I see mercancía is singular here. Can it be used in the plural?

Accepted Answer

Yes, it can. While English uses "merchandise" as an uncountable noun (always singular), Spanish allows you to use both la mercancía (singular) and las mercancías (plural) to refer to goods. In this sentence, the singular form acts as a collective noun for all the goods in the container.

La mercancía ya ha llegado en el contenedor por mar.

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