When do I use "ala", "al", "a el" etc?

Question

Really confused about this. I know that "al" is abbreviated. But when do you abbreviate?

Also, why does "ala" not have a space, but "a el" does?

Finally does it depend on the Masculine/Feminine of the object/subject of the sentence?

Thanks!

How long have you been leaning Spanish? - rac1, Mar 4, 2017

A few months. Why? - Vaderluke, Mar 4, 2017

Answer 1

Ala means wing and is not a contraction. It's always a la (separated) when it means to the El pájaro tiene dos alas. The bird has two wings. Voy a la mesa I go to the table.

Al is a contraction meaning to the when it's masculine and it' s always together and never separated. Voy al cine. I go to the movies.

The only time you could use a el (separated) is when el is a proper name ( nombre propio) . Example Voy a "El Collar de Oro". In this case " El Collar de Oro" is the name of a jewelry store.

Answer 2

"A el" is always contracted to "al." This has to do with masculine and feminine only in that "el" is a masculine definite pronoun, which is used with masculine nouns. It has more to do with ease of pronunciation.

I'm a student of Spanish like you, so I could be missing something, but as far as I know "ala" is a noun that means "wing" or "brim" as in the brim of a hat. The preposition "a" before the feminine definite pronoun "la" is, as far as I know, never written as "ala."

The only thing I would add is that "a plus él", when "él" is the pronoun he/him, you never shorten it, it will always be "a él"- like "le di una manzana a él". :) - bosquederoble, Mar 4, 2017

Thanks, bosque. I forgot about that distinction. - AnnRon, Mar 4, 2017

Answer 3

A few months. Why?