Spanish IV – leccion 4

The Personal “a”

Personal a• Personal a does not exist in English.• It is used in Spanish because it is

grammatically correct. • The hardest part is remembering to use a

because it does not occur in translation.

Personal a• Personal a is used in front of any direct object that is

a person, a pet or personification . • Example: I read the book.– Direct object is book, is it a person or pet?– NO! Yo leo el libro.

• Example: I see Lupe.– Direct object is Lupe, is it a person or pet?– YES! Yo veo a Lupe. personal a

It is used before the person that is the direct object. That’s why it’s called the personal “a.“

• Personification: A country or object can be personified — treated as if it were a person. Use of the personal a often implies some sort of a personal relationship, such as an emotional attachment, with the noun personified. Yo extraño mucho a los Estados Unidos, I very much miss the United States. Abracé a la muñeca a causa de era mi amiga, I hugged the doll, for she was my friend.

personal amas ejemplos

• When used as direct objects, the pronouns alguien (somebody), nadie (nobody) and quién (whom) require the personal a. So do alguno (some) and ninguno (none) when referring to people. No veo a nadie, I don't see anyone. Quiero golpear la pared, I want to hit the wall. Quiero golpear a alguien, I want to hit somebody. ¿A quién pertenece esta silla? Whose chair is this? ¿Taxis? No vi ningunos. Taxis? I didn't see any. ¿Taxistas? No vi a ningunos. Taxi drivers? I didn't see any.

The Personal “a”• Personal a will not follow any forms of estar,

ser and tener** but with this last verb sometimes in a specific situation you will use personal a. The personal a is used after tener when it is used in the sense to hold someone or to have someone somewhere. Tengo a mi hijo en los brazos, I have my son in my arms. Tengo a mi hija en el pesebre, I have my daughter in the crib.

The Personal “a”• Sometimes we need to say the word “the”

after the personal “a”.• Example: I see the woman = Yo veo a la mujer.• There are 4 ways to do this - use:1. a la – if the person is feminine singular.2. al – if the person is masculine singular (we cannot

use a el)3. a las – if the person is feminine plural.4. a los – if the person is masculine plural.

Práctica - Read the sentence and decide if a “personal a” is necessary. If it is, please write it in.

1. Veo ____ la televisión.

2. Busco ___ mis hermanos. 3. ¿Tienes ____ muchos primos?

4. Ella invita ____ Juan a la fiesta.

5. Tengo ____mi hijo en los brazos

6. Cuando abrace __ mi oso de peluche pude dormir

Veo la televisión.

Busco a mis hermanos.

¿Tienes muchos primos?

Ella invita a Juan a la fiesta.

Tengo a mi hijo en los brazos

Cuando abracé a mi oso de peluche pude dormir