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En vs Por

 

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  #1  
Old February 05, 2010, 06:39 AM
Johntan Johntan is offline
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En vs Por

Hi everyone. I am currently grappling with the uses of en and por, particularly in sentences such as "en la manana"...or is it "por la manana"? in these contexts, which word is used and why?
Thankyou
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  #2  
Old February 05, 2010, 09:18 AM
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Hi everyone. I am currently grappling with the uses of en and por, particularly in sentences such as "en la manana"...or is it "por la manana"? in these contexts, which word is used and why?
Thankyou
The meaning is almost the same but usually you would say en la mañana
in the following way: Let's meet in the morning-Vamos a encontrarnos en la mañana.(if it's a set thing on a specific day)
You would use por la mañana more commonly in this context:
At this time of the year the birds start to sing in the morning/En este
parte del año los pájaros empiezan a cantar por las mañana

Por las tardes tomamos café in la cafeteria.
En la tarde vamos a tomar café en la cafeteria

This should be confirmed by native Spanish speakers.
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Old February 05, 2010, 09:25 AM
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Perikles Perikles is offline
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So you are saying por for continued, repeated or unspecific action, and en for one particular event?
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Old February 05, 2010, 09:56 AM
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Originally Posted by Perikles View Post
So you are saying por for continued, repeated or unspecific action, and en for one particular event?
I can't say I've heard that either

por la mañana - for 'at some time in the morning, or for the whole morning' voy a trabajar mañana por la mañana


de la mañana - at a specific hour
trabajo a las 9.30 de la mañana

I'm happy to be corrected though - where are the native speakers when you need them?
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Old February 05, 2010, 10:12 AM
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"En la mañana" and "por la mañana" are synonyms to me. I hear "en la mañana" more often.

En las mañanas trabajo en una oficina. = Trabajo en una oficina por las mañanas.
I work mornings in an office.

Nos vemos en la tarde. = Nos vemos por la tarde.
See you this afternoon.

Siempre me despierto en la noche. = Siempre me despierto por la noche.
I always wake up at night.
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Last edited by AngelicaDeAlquezar; February 05, 2010 at 10:36 AM. Reason: Thanks for the correction, Perikles. :)
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Old February 05, 2010, 11:50 AM
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Wouldn't you rather say: vamos a tener una reunion en la tarde.
than: vamos a terer una reunion por la tarde.?
Wouldn't you say: Por la tarde tenemos reuniones

To me "en" sounds more pointed.
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Old February 05, 2010, 12:02 PM
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I think that "en" (la mañana, la tarde, la noche) is more common in LA, while we say "por".
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Old February 05, 2010, 01:10 PM
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Like Angéelica said. we use both form the same. It does not make a difference...that I can discern at this moment.
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Old February 05, 2010, 01:12 PM
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Thank you for clarifying my doubt.
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