Por as an indicator of intermediate destinations?
As I said in another post, my big "project" in Spanish right now is to try to figure out the differences between por and para. One source (Practice Makes Perfect: Pronouns and Prepositions) said that por can be used to indicate a destination if the destination is a temporary stop along the longer journey. Here is an example it has:
Voy por el banco antes de ir al teatro – I'm going by the bank before going to the theater
In that sentence, according to the book, por is used because el banco is not the final destination. Is this true? Is por used for intermediate destinations on a longer trip, while para is used for final destinations?
3 Answers
In that sentence, according to the book, por is used because el banco is not the final destination. Is this true? Is por used for intermediate destinations on a longer trip, while para is used for final destinations?
The explanation is not the best, but the answer is correct. It´s not so much a matter of a long or short trip or even stopping but of a route to the final destination. It might be easier to think of it this way: "Voy por el banco antes de ir al teatro" .... "I´m going to the theatre by way of the bank." If stopping at the bank is important to note, then that will be spoken clearly, ie "Voy al banco y después voy al teatro." The difference is subtle.
Yes, I think of "por" this way too---
"I´m going to the theatre by way of/via the bank."
"I'm going to Madrld by way of/via/through England." Voy a Madrid por Inglaterra.
One rule of "por" is to show the reason for an errand and is generally used with ir, venir, pasar, mandar, volver, and preguntar.
Example:
Paso por ti a las ocho - I'll come by for you at eight o'clock
Destination generally uses "para",
Example:
El hombre salió para Madrid - The man left for Madrid
Therefore I would imagine "por" is used in your example because of the use of the verb "ir".
