En in Spanish

How Do You Use En in Spanish?

When to Use En in Spanish?

If you were told that en is a Spanish preposition and were asked what it means, you most likely would guess “in” or “on.” And you’d be right in both cases. But en can also be translated as “at,” “about,” “by,” “on top of,” “upon,” “inside of,” and other ways, so its use isn’t as straightforward as it may appear.

The Spanish Preposition “en”

•           The Spanish preposition en frequently means “in” or “on” when referring to physical locations

•           En can also be used to mean “in” in certain time expressions.

•           En is so used in phrases and following certain verbs with translations that aren’t always predictable. These idioms and verb phrases must be learned individually.

 

Fortunately, when en doesn’t mean “on” or “in,” you can usually tell by the context what is meant. Like some other prepositions, en can seem quite versatile to the foreigner. Here are the most common uses:

Using En for Locations and Meaning ‘In’

When it is used in describing locations, en can mean “in” or “inside of.” As in the third and fourth examples here, en can also be used this way figuratively.

El dinero está en la caja. (The money is in the box.) Vivo en España. (I live in Spain.)

La crisis sólo está en la mente de las personas. (The crisis is only in the minds of people.)

Hay cien cantavos en un dólar. (There are 100 cents in a dollar.)

Using En in Time Expressions

En can be used in time expressions much as it is in English with periods of time other than days of the week.

Llegamos por tren en una hora. (We arrive by train in one hour.)

Trabajaré en el verano. (I will work in the summer.)

Esperan aprobar la ley en dos semanas. (They hope to pass the law in two weeks.)

– With days of the week, a preposition isn’t needed: 

Llegamos el lunes. (We arrive on Tuesday.)

Using En for Locations and Meaning ‘On’

En is frequently used to meet “on” in the sense of meaning “on top of” or “placed on.”

El dinero está en la mesa. (The money is on the table.)

Fijó los carteles en la pared. (He put the posters on the wall. Note that the preposition a also could have been used here: Fijó los carteles a la pared.)

Las manchas en la cara pueden aparecer por diversos motivos. (Blemishes on the face can appear for various reasons.)

Using En in Expressing Values

Although not particularly common, en is sometimes used instead of por when referring to costs or similar values:

Vendió el carro en $2.000. (He sold the car for $2,000.)

Compró el móvil en un buen precio. (She bought the cellphone for a good price.)

Tenemos el cojín ideal para ti en sólo $349.00 pesos. (We have the ideal cushion for you for only 349 pesos.)

En in Miscellaneous Expressions

Numerous phrases or idioms use en. Most of these need to be learned as phrases rather than simply translating word for word:

·en broma, as a joke

en busca de, in search of

en cambio, on the other hand

en casa, at home

en español, in Spanish

en honor de, in honor of

en la actualidad, presently

en la radio, on (the) radio; en la televisión, on (the) television

en lugar de, instead of, in place of

en secreto, in secret

en seguida, immediately

en serio, seriously

en todas partes, everywhere

en vez de, instead of

en vilo, anxiously awaiting

en vista de, in view of

en vivo, live (as in live TV)

en voz alta, in a loud voice; en voz baja, in a soft voice.

Using En With Certain Verbs

When used with many verbs, en is translated as “in” or “on”:

ayudar en algo, to help in doing something

competer en, to compete in

concentrarse en, to concentrate on

concurrir en, to concur in

confiar en, to trust in; creer en, to believe in; esperar en, to trust in

empeñarse en, to persist in; insistir en, to insist on

intervenir en, to participate in

persistir en, to persist in

reflejar en, to reflect on

resultar en, to result in.

But it can have other translations as well:

actuar en consecuencia, to act accordingly

adentrarse en, to get into

advertir en, to notice

aplicarse en, to devote oneself to

caerle en suerte, to get lucky

coincidir en que, to agree that

comprometerse en, to get involved with

concurrir en, to meet at

consentir en, to agree to

consistir en, to be composed of

convenir en, to agree to

convertir(se) en, to change into

equivocarse en, to be mistaken about

extenderse en, to spread over

fijarse en, to notice

ingresar en, to be admitted to

inscribirse en, to register for

juntarse en, to meet at

molestarse en, to bother by

pensar en, to think about

quedar en que, to agree that

reparar en, to notice

vacilar en, to hesitate to.

 

Sentences with the word en in Spanish

Este es el lago más profundo en Rusia.	–	This is the deepest lake in Russia.
Alejandro pasa todo su tiempo en el ordenador.	–	Alejandro spends all his time on the computer.
Todo está tan mezclado en mi mente.	–	It’s all so mixed up in my mind.
Acabo de estar en el estudio.	–	I was just in the studio.
Está transmitiendo en directo.	–	It’s broadcasting live.
Ella puede publicar sus viajes en un sitio web también.	–	She can post her trips on a website as well.
No se encuentra disponible en estos momentos.	–	It is not available at this time.
En realidad no es un gran problema.	–	It’s actually not a big deal.
Siempre has estado presente en los buenos y los malos momentos.	–	You have always been present in the good and the bad times.
Los encontré en la biblioteca.	–	I found them in the library.
No te subas en el árbol.	–	Don’t climb the tree.
El cuchillo está en la cocina.	–	The knife is in the kitchen.
No me gustan los subtítulos prefiero escuchar las películas en su idioma original.	–	I don’t like subtitles, I prefer to listen to movies in their original language.
Mi hermana trabaja como contadora en una empresa de mensajería.	–	My sister works as an accountant in a courier company.
Necesitas estar una hora antes en la estación de trenes.	–	You need to be at the train station one hour before.
He visto ese hombre en alguna parte.	–	I have seen that man somewhere.
En la mañana saldremos a comprar lo que nos falta.	–	In the morning we will go out to buy what we need.
La mesa cuadrada va en el medio del comedor.	–	The square table goes in the middle of the dining room.
Me encantaría tener una sala de lectura en mi casa.	–	I would love to have a reading room in my house.
Me gusta mojar el pan en la sopa.	–	I like to dip the bread in the soup.
La comida que dan en la universidad no está en buen estado.	–	The food they serve at the university is not in good condition.
Mi botiquín está en el baño.	–	My medicine cabinet is in the bathroom.
No bebas alcohol en la fiesta.	–	Don’t drink alcohol at the party.
Hemos viajado en compañía de hombres durante más de tres días.	–	We have traveled in the company of men for more than three days.
Nos iremos en cuanto terminemos.	–	We’ll leave as soon as we’re done.
No estoy en contra de tu relación.	–	I’m not against your relationship.
Encontramos un diamante en bruto.	–	We found a diamond in the rough.
Un terremoto puede producirse en cualquier momento.	–	An earthquake can strike at any time.
Está en el salón de operaciones.	–	He’s in the operating room.
Me ofrecieron el papel principal en la obra de teatro.	–	I was offered the lead role in the play.

Ella está en la editorial.	–	She is in the editorial.
Se sentó en la silla.	–	She sat down on the chair.
Deja el abrigo en la cama.	–	She leaves the coat on the bed.
Las mesas están colocadas en ángulo.	–	The tables are set at an angle.
Dio la vuelta a Venezuela en dos meses.	–	She went around Venezuela in two months.
Se ha especializado en derecho administrativo.	–	She has specialized in administrative law.
Pusimos los regalos en círculo.	–	We put the gifts in a circle.
La compañía teatral fue de pueblo en pueblo repitiendo su espectáculo.	–	The theatrical company went from town to town repeating their show.
En esa tienda es donde venden varios modelos de vestidos.	–	In that store is where they sell various models of dresses.
Nos mudamos en febrero.	–	We moved in February.
Este auto está en el taller hace un mes.	–	This car has been in the shop for a month.
Su uso es poco frecuente en España.	–	Its use is rare in Spain.
Tu padre está ahora en una reunión.	–	Your father is now in a meeting.
Ese hombre se aburre en la sala de espera.	–	That man is bored in the waiting room.
En varias playas está prohibida la acampada.	–	Camping is prohibited on several beaches.
Hemos pasado estas vacaciones en Barcelona.	–	We have spent these holidays in Barcelona.
Ella puso las flores que le regalaste en ese jarrón.	–	She put the flowers you gave her in that vase.
Ahora estoy en la parada esperando el transporte.	–	Now I am at the stop waiting for the transport.
¿En dónde estuviste toda la noche?	–	Where were you all night?
Nos encontramos en la playa.	–	We meet at the beach.
Ya empezaron las reparaciones en la casa.	–	Repairs have already started on the house.
Hay un nido en ese árbol.	–	There is a nest in that tree.
¿En dónde te encuentras ahora?	–	Where are you now?
Colocó la carga en su caballo.	–	She placed the load on her horse.
Él estaba en esa dirección.	–	He was in that direction.
Se ha convertido en el líder de esta organización.	–	He has become the leader of this organization.
En el siglo XIX se modernizó el proceso de edición.	–	In the 19th century, the editing process was modernized.
Eso explica la escasez de valles en la zona.	–	That explains the scarcity of valleys in the area.
Se le ve la alegría en su rostro.	–	He sees the joy on his face.
La película empezó en cuanto llegamos.	–	The movie started as soon as we arrived.

La encontré en la estación.	–	I found her at the station.
Siempre la veo en el mismo lugar.	–	I always see her in the same place.
Lo puse todo en su sitio.	–	I put everything in her place.
¿En dónde estuviste ayer?	–	Where were you yesterday?
Él nació en Madrid.	–	He was born in Madrid.
Usted ha dado en el clavo.	–	You have hit the nail on the head.
Ocurrió igual que en las películas.	–	It happened just like in the movies.
Eso mismo pone en todos los libros.	–	It says the same thing in all the books.
Ayer estuvimos en el bar.	–	Yesterday we were at the bar.
No estaba en la sala ni en el cuarto.	–	He was not in the room or in the room.
Tomé asiento en la guagua.	–	I took a seat on the bus.
En lo mínimo está el cambio.	–	The minimum is the change.
No tardé mucho en recuperarme.	–	It didn’t take me long to recover.
El fue el primero en hablar.	–	He was the first to speak.
Los imprimieron en Sevilla.	–	They were printed in Seville.
Emergimos en un barrio comercial.	–	We emerged into a commercial district.
Estuvimos ayer en su casa.	–	We were at his house yesterday.
Se encontraba en la habitación.	–	He was in the room.
Nos gustó mucho la estáncia en el hotel.	–	We really liked the stay at the hotel.
Lo había puesto en el extremo de la mesa.	–	He had put it on the end of the table.
¿En dónde nos encontramos?	–	Where we are?
La pareja vive en un castillo.	–	The couple lives in a castle.
Nos imitó en el recorrido.	–	He imitated us on the tour.
Lo acostumbraba en su tierra.	–	He was used to it in his land.
Eso ocurre hoy en día.	–	That happens today.
Ha dado usted en el clavo.	–	He has hit the nail on the head.
En fin, así es el mundo.	–	After all, this is the world.
Muchas veces en la vida.	–	Many times in life.
Lo recuerdo en mis días de juventud.	–	I remember it in my younger days.
Y todo aquello iba en prosa.	–	And all that was in prose.

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