When do I use 'por' and when do I use 'para'?
SpanishAsked by Stuart
I have read the lists of rules and I still get it wrong in conversation. Is there a simpler way to think about it?
← All questions
1 answer
The rule lists are correct but useless in real time, because you cannot run through a list mid-sentence. Try this instead: **Para looks forward.** Purpose, destination, recipient, deadline. It answers *what for?* **Por looks back.** Cause, reason, exchange, duration, means. It answers *why?* or *through what?* - Estudio **para** aprobar. (Purpose — the goal ahead.) - Estudio **por** mi familia. (Motive — the reason behind.) - Salgo **para** Madrid. (Destination.) - Paso **por** Madrid. (Through it.) - Lo compré **por** 20 euros. (Exchange.) - Es **para** ti. (Recipient.) A quick test that works surprisingly often: if you could say *"in order to"* in English, you want **para**. If you could say *"because of"*, *"in exchange for"*, or *"by way of"*, you want **por**. Do not try to be perfect at this immediately. Native speakers will always understand you, and the distinction settles through hearing it in context far more than through study. Pick a handful of fixed phrases — *por favor, por fin, por eso, para siempre* — and let the pattern build from there.
Stuart