What are the differences between andar and caminar?

Question

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Answer 1

It is a bit like the difference between to walk and to go in English.

Caminar means to walk, to hike or to stroll ( there are other verbs for this, as Jool says)

Andar means to walkor but can be used for 'how is it going?' in the same way as in English and you can ' andar en bicicleta' I believe. It's more multipurpose. Neither can be used for long distance travel, unless you really mean to say that you're walking all the way to Moscow, or wherever.

I hope this helps.

this is a great help because words with multiple meanings y applications make a difference in understanding exactly what is to be communicated...mucho gracias ¡!¡ - HowardO, Feb 27, 2012

Muchas gracias, howard! - annierats, Feb 27, 2012

Nice :) - Kiwi-Girl, Feb 27, 2012

Answer 2

Hello zhmelissa. Unfortunately, there are several verbs meaning, 'To walk'. Examples would be: Marchar (to walk), Pasearse (to take a walk), Caminar (to walk/along), and Andar ( to walk). Confusing isn't it?!! I believe that 'Caminar and Andar' can be interchanged because they are synonyms. There are however subtle differences, for example: "¿Cómo ANDAN los negocios?"... ("How's business?") You could not use Caminar here. Another example would be: "El CAMINO de hierro"...(Railroad). Again, you couldn't use Andar here. I hope this makes sense. Regards...Jool.