Mandar a por vs mandar por

[cmon]

Found both sentences on WordReference.com
La mandé por el pan. I sent her out for bread.
Nos mandaron a por unos huevos. They sent us out for eggs.

Don't understand the difference.

[Jessica]

well I think the a is the difference.....:P I don't know either.

[CrOtALiTo]

The two phrases mean the same, for example when you sent someone for something, example Te mande a lavar el carro, I sent you washed the car, and when you say Nos mandaron a la escuela, this phrase was a command then someone sent you for something, example Ella nos mando a la escuela, She sent us to the school.

[Jessica]

well then, there IS no difference. I knew that, because just one letter, the personal a can't make a big difference. But I wasn't sure. so cmon, there is no difference, really.

[Tomisimo]

Originally Posted by cmon

La mandé por el pan. I sent her out for bread.
Nos mandaron a por unos huevos. They sent us out for eggs.

I'm most familiar with Mexican Spanish, and honestly I don't think I've ever heard the version with a. I would normally say mandar por, not mandar a por.

It would be great to get a native speaker's opinion on this.

[CrOtALiTo]

It was your own view point, I respect that.

[Rusty]

I think it's a regional thing, and that only Spaniards say the extra preposition.
The first sentence came from Pocket Oxford Spanish Dictionary, published in the UK. The second sentence came from Diccionario Espasa Concise: Español-Inglés English-Spanish, published in Madrid, Spain.

[cmon]

Sosia (native language-spanish of Spain) had corrected a practice sentence of mine by adding an a after mandar.
Su novio despreciable la mandó (a) por cerveza y cigarillos.
Just a regional thang.

[sosia]

I have already answered this in the other thread
Yes, we usually use it with a. Without "a" it's OK and understood.
Reason: I don't know.
The next explanation its only "free-thinking"
"mandar a por cigarros"
"Mandar a hacer un recado"
"Mandar a hacer una tarea"
Perhaps saying "a" you say you have already given the task to one person.
"Mandar por cigarrillos" it's more a wish (something to be done.) than something you have already ordered.
Must be something regional.

Saludos

[Elaina]

Originally Posted by sosia

I have already answered this in the other thread
Yes, we usually use it with a. Without "a" it's OK and understood.
Reason: I don't know.
The next explanation its only "free-thinking"
"mandar a por cigarros"
"Mandar a hacer un recado"
"Mandar a hacer una tarea"
Perhaps saying "a" you say you have already given the task to one person.
"Mandar por cigarrillos" it's more a wish (something to be done.) than something you have already ordered.
Must be something regional.

Saludos

Somehow ... mandar a por cigarros.......just doesn't sound right and it doesn't make sense to me.

[Tomisimo]

Originally Posted by Elaina

Somehow ... mandar a por cigarros.......just doesn't sound right and it doesn't make sense to me.

It doesn't sound right to me either, but it's normal in Spain. Gotta love those regional differences.

[CrOtALiTo]

The sentece correct is MANDAR POR CIGARROS, OR MANDAR POR UNOS CIGARROS.

[Tomisimo]

En México lo corrrecto es "mandar por", pero como se ha explicado, en España se puede decir "madar por" o "mandar a por". Los dos son correctos.