a before su

Question

I just started to notice the use of a before su and before la. Is a always used before these and are their other instance where a always proceeds another word?

You need to heed especially Bosquederoble's answer and advise therein. If something in Spanish looks puzzling to you, put as much of the context in your post to help the experts here understand your need. - Jubilado, Dec 29, 2014

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Answer 1

Hola, Duke.

You need the "a" before "su" or "sus" only when followed by a person word or a name.

Ex. Voy a esperar a su hermano aquí.--- I'm going to wait for his brother here.

Or. Voy a esperar a Felipe----. I am going to wait for Felipe

But (watch this)

Samuel va a dar una vuelta en su carro nuevo.

Samuel is going for a drive in his new car.

This is why this usage of "a" is called the "personal a" you use it whenever a person (and sometimes a pet) is the direct object of a verb.

The other uses of "a" are quite numerous, you'll find them in our grammar section. - Daniela2041, Dec 30, 2014

Answer 2

The "a" has little to do with the "la" or the "su" and has to do with situations that require the "a"- whatever connection you are noting is entirely random.

One such situation, as Daniela notes, is the personal "a".

There are other situations:

Llegaré a la una. I will arrive at one o'clock.

Es la una. It is one o'clock.

Fui a la tienda. I went to the store.

Fui a una tienda. I went to a store.

Fui a su tienda. I went to his store.

Me fui de su tienda. I left his store (got myself out of his store).

Fui al parque. I went to the park.

Entré en su casa. Entré a su casa. I went into his house. The choice of en vs. a here has to do with regional preference.

Sometimes "a" will precede "la" or "su" and sometimes it will precede something else, and sometimes something else will precede "la" or "su".

Answer 3

Thank you, Everyone, for your assistance. I have using Duolingo for the past 72 days and all of a sudden I see "a su" stuff start showing up without any explanation.

Él ayudo a su madre.

This is an example of the "personal a" that Daniela refers to. The direct object of ayudó is su madre (his mother): He helped his mother. - Jubilado, Dec 30, 2014