Spanish: Personal preposition
From UniLang Wiki
Spanish has a very fascinating preposition that is quite difficult to understand for speakers of English and many other languages. It has a preposition that has to be used when referring to people.
This preposition is simply: "a"
The rule goes:
- If the direct object is a person, then the personal preposition "a" should precede the direct object. This applies to all verbs except TENER and HABER (hay).
Some example:
- Veo a Juan - I see Juan (veo juan would be incorrect)
- Mi hermano conoce a María (my brother knows Mary)
Note that this by definition does not apply to objects, but for pet animals it can be used:
- Veo un libro - I see a book
- Veo un ave - I see a bird
- Veo a mi perro - I see my dog
This preposition is not used with direct object pronouns:
- Le veo - I see him
Moreover, do not confuse this personal preposition with the Spanish preposition for "to", which is also "a"
- Voy a la ciudad
