Post on 23-Feb-2016
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por and paraSection 4
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This presentation explains the many different uses of the Spanish prepositions por and para.
You will see that each use, or “sense,” is an extension of one common, or core use, which we will call the “primary meaning.” As we present each new use, we will also show you how it fits with the other uses, thereby building up a
whole network of uses for each preposition.
Many uses are based on conceptual metaphors. Though this kind of analysis might be new to you, in actuality
metaphors are used all the time in human language! Try to suspend your disbelief
and process the information as best you can. As you go through the presentation you will also be completing an
activity to help you process the information.
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Por
Primary Meaning:
The primary meaning of por is ‘path through a container.’ More often than not, this container is metaphorical. What is considered to be the container of the action can be space, time, or even a person’s interest. What is key in this sense is the path, or the method in which an action is accomplished.
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Primary Meaning: Path through a container
La futbolista corre por el campo hasta la portería.
The field is thought of as the container
The player is following an imagined path through the field to get to the goal. She is moving toward something within a container.
Por marks the path
(The soccer player runs through the field toward the goal.)
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“through”
container path
Here is the primary meaning of por, shown in a basic, graphic form.
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En caso de incendio, debe salir por la ventana. The window is
thought of as the container
Por marks the path
(In case of fire, you should exit through the window.)
Example 2 - Path through a container
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El gato mira por la ventana.Again, the window is thought of as the container
Por marks the path of the cat’s gaze
(The cat looks through the window.)
Example 3 - Path through a container
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• caminar por el parque• (walk through the park)
• pasar por la aduana• (pass through customs)
• pasear por el centro comercial• (stroll through the mall)
• volar por el aire• (fly through the air)
More examples - Path through a container
¡Te toca!
• Create your own example sentence to illustrate the primary use of por, which is to mean “path through a container.”
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por sense # 2
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Las personas caminan por la playa.
The beach = the container, with a natural edge
Por marks the path
(The people walk along the beach.)
Alongside Sense
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The “alongside” sense of por comes directly from the Primary Meaning.
We still have the container…
and we still have the path.
However, this time the path is on the edge of the container, instead of somewhere in the middle. The container has an edge on which something could move along.
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La mujer anda por la calle.
Por marks the path
(The woman walks along the street.)
Example 2 - Alongside
The street is thought of as the container, with an edge along which to walk.
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Los oseznos juegan por la orilla del río.
The river bank is thought of as the container, with an edge along which to play
Por marks the path
(The bear cubs play along the river bank.)
Example 3 - Alongside
¡Te toca!
• Create your own example sentence to illustrate the alongside sense of por.
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The Primary Meaning:Path through a container
Alongside
Las personas caminan por la playa.La futbolista corre por el campo hasta la portería.
We are building a meaning network. We will see how all of the meanings of por are somehow connected to the Primary Meaning.
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por sense # 3
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Estudiamos por dos horas.
(We studied for 2 hours.)
Time Elapsed Sense
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Por is used when speaking about how long something lasted or how much time it took.
Duration of the activity
Duration is placed against the container of time.
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Consider a timeline that we pass along every day.
This connects back to the alongside sense of por.
An activity passes along that line for a certain amount of time.
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¡Estuvimos en el cine por 3 horas!
Por marks movement alongside the path of time
(We were in the movie theater for 3 hours!)
Example 2 - Time elapsed
Indicates time elapsed.
Hablo con mi madre por 20 minutos todos los días.
Por marks movement alongside the path of time
(I talk with my mother for 20 minutes every day.)22
Indicates time elapsed.
Example 3 - Time elapsed
¡Te toca!
• Create your own example sentence to illustrate the time elapsed sense of por.
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The Primary Meaning:Path through a container
AlongsideTime Elapsed
Las personas caminan por la playa.La futbolista corre por el campo hasta la portería.. Estudiamos por dos horas.
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End of Section 1
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por sense # 4
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Vagaron por la casa y encontraron a sus amigos en la cocina.
(They wandered around the house and found their friends in the kitchen.)
The people did not walk in a straight line through the house, they moved in an indirect path within it.
Containment Sense
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The “containment” sense of por also comes directly from the Primary Meaning.
Once again, we still have the container…
…and we still have the path.
This time the path does not move through the container, but WITHIN the container.
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But why does the path line curve?
Because when the path is kept within the container the path is not deliberate or in a straight line.
Containment is similar to the idea of “all around place X,” “somewhere in place X” or “sometime during the period of X”
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Quiero viajar por Rusia después de graduarme.
(I want to travel around Russia after I graduate.)
Example 2 - ContainmentRussia is the container against which the movement is placed.
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La casa está por aquí.
The verb used in the “containment” sense does not have to be a verb of movement.
Once again, there is not straight line of movement, but the verb is still occurring within the container.
(The house is around here.)
Example 3 - Containment
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Hay papeles por toda la oficina.
(There are papers all over the office.)
Example 4 - Containment
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Vivo por acá.
(I live around here.)
Example 5 - Containment
• Create your own example sentence to illustrate the containment sense of por.
¡Te toca!
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El gato duerme por el día.
(The cat sleeps during the day.)
The event (sleeping) occurs during a general time frame.
The container in this sense might also be metaphorical, as in this example, where the container is time.
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General time frame
Creo que la boda será por julio.
(I think that the wedding will be sometime in July.)
Example 2 - Temporal containment
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Se puede ver las estrellas por la noche.
(You can see the stars at night)
Example 3 - Temporal containment
• Create your own example sentence to illustrate the temporal containment sense of por.
¡Te toca!
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Closely related to this “ temporal containment” sense of por is a useful phrase, “por ahora.”
Tenemos bastante comida por ahora.(We have enough food for now.)
Container
In this case, the container is now, as the general time frame.
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Also closely related to the “containment” sense of por is another useful phrase, “por lo general.”
Por lo general, la familia come a las ocho.
(In general, the family eats at eight.)
Container
In this case, the container is the idea of generality; what generally happens.
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The Primary Meaning:Path through a container
AlongsideTime Elapsed
Las personas caminan por la playa.La futbolista corre por el campo hasta la portería.. Estudiamos por dos horas.
Containment
Vagaron por la casa y encontraron sus amigos.
TemporalPor ahora
Por lo general
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por sense # 5
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Me intereso por las ciencias. Siempre voto por el mejor candidato.
(I am interested in science.) (I always vote for the best candidate.)
In both of these examples the speaker has shown interest, inclination, or endorsement of the focus of the sentence.
Inclination Sense
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The “inclination” sense of por also comes from the “containment” sense.
The personwhat the person is interested in
This is a metaphorical extension of the “containment” sense. The interest (or inclination, or endorsement) of the speaker is contained in the box. The box represents what the person is interested in. The person’s interest is located somewhere in the box, generally, but not on a particular directional path, so the path is drawn wavy here.
interest/inclination
¡Qué interesante!
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It is important to note that only a few verbs will use the preposition “por” in this manner:
interesarse porvotar poroptar por
Some verbs will function like gustar and will use the object of interest as the subject of the verb:
Me gusta mucho ir a la playa.Me encanta el cine.
Other verbs will simply not use a preposition:
Aprecio el arte.
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XDesafortunadamente, mis padres optaron por no visitarme este semestre.
En vez de visitarme, optaron por ir a Hawaii.
(Unfortunately, my parents opted not to visit me this semester.)
(Instead of visiting me, they opted to go to Hawaii.)
Example 2 - Inclination
• Create your own example sentence to illustrate the inclination sense of por.
¡Te toca!
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Closely related to this “inclination” sense of por is a useful phrase, “por supuesto.”
The personwhat the person is endorsing
“Supuesto” is in fact a supposition, and since the speaker is interested in this supposition (the idea that her friend will attend the party), she endorses it.
“Of course” can also be expressed using other phrases, such as “Claro.”
endorsement
¡Por supuesto puedes venir a la fiesta!
(Of course you can come to the party!)
¡Claro!
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The Primary Meaning:Path through a container
AlongsideTime Elapsed
Las personas caminan por la playa.La futbolista corre por el campo hasta la portería.
Estudiamos por dos horas.
Containment
Vagaron por la casa y encontraron sus amigos.
TemporalPor ahora
Por lo general Siempre voto por el mejor candidato.
InclinationPor supuesto
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End of section 2
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por sense # 6
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Un 30 por ciento de los estudiantes hablan inglés.
(30 percent of the students speak English.)
Indicates the amount of the capacity that is full.
Proportion Sense
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The “proportion” sense of por comes from the “containment” sense.
The entire container represents the capacity that something is permitted to reach.
Indicates the amount of the container that is actually filled or used.
100%
30%
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Quiero sacar 85 por ciento o más en el próximo examen.
(I want to get 85 per cent or more on the next test.)
Example 2 - Proportion
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5 x 2 = 10Cinco por dos son diez.
Por is used in mathematics to describe relationships between numbers, as in:
Multiplication and Division
Diez dividido por cinco son dos.
10 ÷ 5 = 2(Five by two is ten.)
(Ten divided by five is two.)
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We can see how these uses are related to proportion if we remember that multiplication and division can also be expressed as fractions, just like proportion:
10 ÷ 5 = 210 5 = 2
10 (100%)
2(20%)
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(The speed limit is 80 miles per hour!)
Por is used for denoting units of measure as well.
Unit of measure
¡El límite de velocidad es 80 millas por hora!
Indicates the unit of measure.
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80It’s easy to understand why units of measure use por, just like proportion, when one thinks of the units of measure in terms of fractions
(80 miles hour)
millashora
Times per unit like days, weeks, and months are also units of measure thought of in terms of fractions and expressed with por (or the preposition a, like in English).
Yo como 3
Yo como tres veces por día.
(I eat three times per (or “a”) day.)
vecesdía
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Algunas personas comen en restaurantes más de 5 veces por semana.
(Some people eat in restaurants more than 5 times per/a week.)
Example 3 - Proportion
• Create your own example sentence to illustrate the proportion sense of por.
¡Te toca!
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The Primary Meaning:Path through a container
AlongsideTime Elapsed
Las personas caminan por la playa.La futbolista corre por el campo hasta la portería.
Estudiamos por dos horas.
Containment
Vagaron por la casa y encontraron sus amigos.
Temporal,Por ahora,
Por lo general
InclinationPor supuesto
Un 30 por ciento de los estudiantes hablan inglés.
ProportionMultiplication,
Division,Units of Measure
Siempre voto por el mejor candidato.
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por sense # 7
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Me gustaría cambiar este sombrero negro por ese verde.(I would like to exchange this black hat for that green one.)
La tomé por Carolina.(I (mis)took her for Carolina.)
In this case, someone else has been mistaken for Carolina. There is an exchange in the speaker’s head of two different people.
Exchange Sense
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One of the items being exchanged might be thanks!
¡Gracias por el regalo!
(Thank you for the gift!)
There is an exchange of thanks and a gift.
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The “exchange” sense of por also comes directly from the Primary Meaning.
The path of the exchange is central to this meaning, as it is in the Primary Meaning.
In this case there are two paths: one object is being exchanged for another.
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Le reembolsaron por la chaqueta que devolvió.
(They reimbursed her for the jacket that she returned)
Example 2 - Exchange
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Lo toman por tonto.
(They take him for an idiot)
Example 3 - Exchange
(that is, in their minds, they exchanged this person with an idiot)
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Ayer yo trabajé por María porque ella se enfermó.
(Yesterday I worked for Maria because she was sick.)
Example 4 - Exchange
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How would you express “Julio made the cake for Juanita”?:
Julio hizo el pastel por Juanita.
Julio hizo el pastel para Juanita.
You could use either para or por, but you would imply different things!
When the sentence contains para it refers to the recipient, as a human destination.
The cake is going to Juanita, and she’ll keep it. We will talk more about this sense of para later.
When the sentence contains por it implies exchange. Julio is making the cake so that Juanita does not have to.
She’ll probably take it to a party for someone else.
¡Te toca!
• Create your own example sentence to illustrate the exchange sense of por.
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The Primary Meaning:Path through a container
AlongsideTime Elapsed
Las personas caminan por la playa.La futbolista corre por el campo hasta la portería.
Estudiamos por dos horas.
Containment
Vagaron por la casa y encontraron sus amigos.
Temporal,Por ahora,
Por lo general
InclinationPor supuesto
Un 30 por ciento de los estudiantes hablan inglés.
ProportionMultiplication,
Division,Units of Measure
La tomé por Carolina.
Exchange
Siempre voto por el mejor candidato.
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End of Section 4
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por sense # 8
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Las personas van a Madrid por tren.
The train is the means by which the people are going to Madrid.
(The people go to Madrid by train.)
Means Sense
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The “means” sense of por also comes directly from the Primary Meaning.
The dashed lines represent the means by which something is occurring.
The arrow represents the process.
This sense can also be thought of as the “mode” or “manner” of doing something.
End result of this process by this means
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Los sordos se comunican por señas.
(The deaf communicate with signs.)
Example 2 - Means
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Tengo que entregar la tarea por escrito.
(I have to turn in the homework in writing.)
Example 3 - Means
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Los nombres están organizados por orden alfabético.
(The names are organized by alphabetical order.)
Example 4 - Means
¡Te toca!
• Create your own example sentence to illustrate the means sense of por.
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Closely related to this “means” sense of por is a very useful phrase, “por casualidad.”
¡Por casualidad encontré el vestido perfecto!
(By chance I found the perfect dress!) Chance
The arrow is the process (finding). The end result is having found the dress.
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The Primary Meaning:Path through a container
AlongsideTime Elapsed
Las personas caminan por la playa.La futbolista corre por el campo hasta la portería.
Estudiamos por dos horas.
Containment
Vagaron por la casa y encontraron sus amigos.
Temporal,Por ahora,
Por lo general
InclinationPor supuesto
Un 30 por ciento de los estudiantes hablan inglés.
ProportionMultiplication,
Division,Units of Measure
La tomé por Carolina.
ExchangeLas personas van a Madrid por tren.
MeansPor casualidadSiempre voto por el mejor candidato.
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por sense # 9
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El hombre lucha por la justicia.
(The man fights for (because of) justice.)
The man’s motivating factor is justice. That notion of justice is what is pushing him to fight.
Motivation Sense
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The “motivation” sense of por extends from the “means” sense. This time, instead of describing the means, we are describing the motivation for an occurrence.
The motivating factor Desired result
The path is not shaded because there is no guarantee that the desired result will occur. However, the path is still important, for the desired result cannot occur without it.
The speaker’s focus is on the motivating factor.
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Voy a casarme por amor.
(I am going to get married for love.)
Because of love…
Example 2 - Motivation
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Los atletas trabajan más por la fama que por el dinero.
(Athletes work more for fame than for (because of) money.)
Example 3 - Motivation
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Él no quería copiar de su amigo por miedo de las consecuencias.
Example 4 - Motivation
(He didn’t want to copy off his friend for fear of the consequences.)
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The motivation sense is often used with verbs like venir, ir, salir, vover, preguntar, pasar, and mandar when discussing errands and the reason/motivation for doing that errand.
Note that the motivation is usually a noun. Motivation is a bit different than desired outcome, which is a sense of para that we will see later. This desired outcome sense is usually expressed with para plus an infinitival verb.
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Él salió por tabaco. Ella salió para comprar tabaco.
(She left to buy tobacco.)
Let’s see an example of this comparison:
(He left for (on account of needing) tobacco.)
¡Te toca!
• Create your own example sentence to illustrate the motivation sense of por.
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Related to this “motivation” sense of por is a useful phrase, “por eso.”
Tenía mucho que hacer. Por eso, me levanté temprano
(I had a lot to do. Because of this, I got up early)
The motivating factor Desired result
Having a lot to do is the motivating factor in this case. The phrase por eso refers back to that.
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The Primary Meaning:Path through a container
AlongsideTime Elapsed
Las personas caminan por la playa.La futbolista corre por el campo hasta la portería.
Estudiamos por dos horas.
Containment
Vagaron por la casa y encontraron sus amigos.
Temporal,Por ahora,
Por lo general
InclinationPor supuesto
Un 30 por ciento de los estudiantes hablan inglés.
ProportionMultiplication,
Division,Units of Measure
La tomé por Carolina.
ExchangeLas personas van a Madrid por tren.
MeansPor casualidad
El hombre lucha por la justicia.
Motivation
Por eso
Siempre voto por el mejor candidato.
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por sense # 10
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Pablo estaba cansado por su tarea.
(Pablo was tired because of his homework.)
Doing all his homework caused Pablo to be tired.
Cause Sense
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The “cause” sense of por also extends from the “means” sense.
As we saw with the “means” sense, the arrow is dark because the result did occur. This is the path of the occurrence, which is (like in the Primary Meaning) essential.
End result of the actionSimilar to the motivation sense, the speaker’s focus here is on the cause.
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Mi madre estuvo en el hospital por problemas cardíacos.
My mother was in the hospital because of cardiac problems.
Example 2 - Cause
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Siempre cerramos las ventanas por los mosquitos.
(We always close the windows because of the mosquitos.)
Example 3 - Cause
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As you may have realized by now, prepositions are followed either by nouns or infinitival verbs.
Prepositions (por or otherwise) can NOT be followed by conjugated verbs. In order to use a conjugated verb, you will need porque instead.
¡Te toca!
• Create your own example sentence to illustrate the cause sense of por.
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The Primary Meaning:Path through a container
AlongsideTime Elapsed
Las personas caminan por la playa.La futbolista corre por el campo hasta la portería.
Estudiamos por dos horas.
Containment
Vagaron por la casa y encontraron sus amigos.
Temporal,Por ahora,
Por lo general
InclinationPor supuesto
Un 30 por ciento de los estudiantes hablan inglés.
ProportionMultiplication,
Division,Units of Measure
La tomé por Carolina.
ExchangeLas personas van a Madrid por tren.
MeansPor casualidad
El hombre lucha por la justicia.
Motivation
Por eso
Pablo estaba cansado por su tarea.
Cause
Siempre voto por el mejor candidato.
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por sense # 11
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War and Peace fue escrito en 1869 (por Leo Tolstoy).
(War and Peace was written in 1869 (by Leo Tolstoy).)
If the writer is named, the name is introduced with por. Naming the author is optional.
The path and the end result are explicit, even if we do not know who did the action.
Passive Sense
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The “passive” sense of por extends from the “cause” sense.
This diagram is similar to the diagram for the “cause” sense, but in this case, the subject is not required. The por phrase is optional.
The end result is still explicit.
And once again, we see that the path is dark because the result did occur.
At this time, we do not need to focus on the grammar of the passive, but, as you can see, it takes the form of ser plus past participle, and both agree with the subject.
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La carta fue escrita por el presidente.
(The letter was written by the president.)
Example 2 - Passive
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Los edificios fueron construidos por un arquitecto famoso.
(The buildings were built by a famous architect.)
Example 3 - Passive
¡Te toca!
• Create your own example sentence to illustrate the passive sense of por.
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The Primary Meaning:Path through a container
AlongsideTime Elapsed
Las personas caminan por la playa.La futbolista corre por el campo hasta la portería.
Estudiamos por dos horas.
Containment
Vagaron por la casa y encontraron sus amigos.
Temporal,Por ahora,
Por lo general
InclinationPor supuesto
Un 30 por ciento de los estudiantes hablan inglés.
ProportionMultiplication,
Division,Units of Measure
La tomé por Carolina.
ExchangeLas personas van a Madrid por tren.
MeansPor casualidad
El hombre lucha por la justicia.
Motivation
Por eso
Pablo estaba cansado por su tarea.
Cause
War and Peace fue escrito en 1869 (por Leo Tolstoy).
Passive
Siempre voto por el mejor candidato.