Spanish · CEFR Band 1 (A1) · Chapter 25
DireccionesDirections
Asking for and giving directions. Location words: dónde, aquí, allí, cerca, lejos, al lado, enfrente, derecha, izquierda, entre. Location prepositions take "de": cerca DE, lejos DE, al lado DE, enfrente DE; and "a la": a la derecha, a la izquierda. Key point: "de + el" contracts to "del": "al lado DEL banco", not "al lado de el banco". English speakers forget the contraction. "¿Dónde está…?" — "Está a la derecha, al lado del parque".
Dialogue
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de el / del
- CarlosMike, ¿dónde está la tienda?Mike, where is the shop?
- MikeEstá al lado de el banco.It's next to the bank. (slip: de + el contracts to "del" — say "al lado del banco")
- Carlos"al lado del banco" — de + el se une en "del"."al lado del banco" — de + el join into "del".
- MikeAh, la tienda está al lado del banco, a la derecha.Ah, the shop is next to the bank, on the right.
Dialogue
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¿Está cerca?— Is It Near?
- LucíaPerdona, ¿el parque está cerca?Excuse me, is the park near?
- CarlosSí, está cerca. Está enfrente del hospital.Yes, it is near. It is opposite the hospital.
- Lucía¿Y el baño?And the toilet?
- CarlosEstá allí, a la izquierda, al lado de la estación.It is there, on the left, next to the station.
Vocabulary
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- dónde
interrog.where
- aquí
adverbhere
- allí
adverbthere
- cerca
adverbnear, close (cerca de)
- lejos
adverbfar (lejos de)
- al lado
prepositionnext to (al lado de)
- enfrente
prepositionopposite (enfrente de)
- derecha
n.f.right (a la derecha)
- izquierda
n.f.left (a la izquierda)
- entre
prepositionbetween
Grammar
i
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Place prepositions (de + el = del)
Explanation
To locate things we use place prepositions. Many take "de": cerca DE (near), lejos DE (far), al lado DE (next to), enfrente DE (opposite), entre … y … (between). For sides: "a la derecha" (on the right), "a la izquierda" (on the left). "Aquí" (here) and "allí" (there) mark the distance. KEY RULE: "de" + "el" join into "del": "al lado DEL banco", "cerca DEL parque" — never "de el". ("De la" does NOT contract: "al lado de la tienda".) English speakers forget the contraction: "al lado de el banco" ✗ → "al lado del banco" ✓.
Examples
- ¿Dónde está el baño? — Está allí, a la derecha.Where is the toilet? — It is there, on the right.
- El banco está cerca de la estación.The bank is near the station.
- La tienda está al lado del parque.The shop is next to the park.
- El parque está entre el banco y el hospital.The park is between the bank and the hospital.
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