Word formsdifficulty 2
complex-prepositions
preposiciones compuestas — adverb + `de` (or `a`) form fixed multi-word prepositions: dentro de, después de, antes de, alrededor de, fuera de, encima de, debajo de, cerca de, lejos de, a través de, en lugar de, a pesar de, junto a. Treat the whole phrase as one preposition; the `de` is mandatory and never contracts (`dentro del` only when `el` is the article that follows, never as part of the phrase itself).
Examples
Dentro de la casa.
→ Inside the house.
dentro de = inside; de is part of the preposition.
A pesar de la lluvia.
→ Despite the rain.
Idiomatic complex preposition meaning `despite`.
Cerca del parque.
→ Near the park.
cerca de + el → cerca del (mandatory contraction kicks in on the article that follows).
Words in this rule
| Word | Part of speech |
|---|---|
| dentro de | IN |
| a pesar de | IN |
| a través de | IN |
| alrededor de | IN |
| antes de | IN |
| cerca de | IN |
| debajo de | IN |
| después de | IN |
| en lugar de | IN |
| encima de | IN |
| fuera de | IN |
| junto a | IN |
| lejos de | IN |
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