Hello!
Today I am going to explain another common misconception, how to translate preposition "de" into English. Most commonly, on its own, the preposition "de" can be translated into preposition "from" and preposition "of" - it all depends on the context. However, sometimes preposition "de" doesn't need to be translated at all because a preposition may not be needed in English. Therefore, today, we are going to cover how to tell them apart and how to use the correct translation.
Just so you know, Spanish grammatical rules dictate these are the nine official uses of preposition "de".
La preposición «de» en sus diferentes usos en lengua española expresa:
A.- Posesión y pertenencia: La casa de mi hermana, El Museo de El Prado.
B.- Materia (de qué está elaborado): taza de porcelana, silla de madera, olla de aluminio.
C.- Cualidad: Tú tienes el corazón de oro, Sus lágrimas son de cocodrilo.
D.- Profesión u oficio: Ella trabaja de enfermera, Ahora ejerce de maestro.
E.- Origen o procedencia: Este carro es de 1974, Salimos de Caracas ayer.
F.- Causa: Tiene miedo de todo, Se enfermó de gripe.
G.- Modo: De frente, de lado, de espalda (generalmente son frases adverbiales).
H.- Tiempo: De tarde, de mañana, de día.
I.- Forma parte de frases verbales: Haber de mas infinitivo: Habrá de cumplirse la profesía
I will not cover Point "I" because those verbal phrases are exclusive to Spanish and do not translate literally into English.
A. POSSESSION (noun + "de" + noun)
When using preposition "de" in a possessive format, meaning you use "de" to describe that a noun belongs to another noun, there are two ways to say this in English:
Using noun +"of" + noun
Using the possessive form: noun + apostrophe (') + s + noun
For example:
El color del coche
The colour of the car
The car's colour
El coche de mi madre
The car of my mother
My mother's car
La película de Almodóvar.
The film of Almodovar
Almodovar's film
*Nevertheless, you should know that we should generally use the possessive from (second option) in English. The apostrophe+s format is the best and most recognised way to establish possession in a sentence. Certainly, if you want your English to sound as native as possible, that is what I advise :)
B. MATERIAL (noun + "de" + material noun)
Now, unlike Spanish, describing what material an object is made out of doesn't follow set rules in English. There are many ways to say it.
Most commonly, we simply place the material noun in front of the object noun, and we do not use a preposition.
For example:
La taza de porcelana = The porcelain cup
La olla de aluminio = The aluminium pan
La cuchara de metal = The metal spoon
La Dama de Hierro = The Iron Lady (Margaret Thatcher's Nickname)
Some other times, "de + material noun" is translated into an adjective in English.
For example:
La silla de madera = The wooden chair
La cuchara de metal = The metallic spoon
C. QUALITY (noun + "de" + quality noun)
In this case, the preposition "de" would be translated into "of" (one single F!).
For example:
Tienes un corazón de oro = You have a heart of gold
Tienes un corazón de acero = You have a heart of steel
D. PROFESSION
You probably already know how to say this, but let's recap it just in case. When we talk about professions, we use the preposition "as" + article "a/an" + profession.
For example:
Ella trabaja de enfermera = She works as a nurse
Él trabaja de astronauta = He works as an astronaut
Ella ahora ejerce de profesora = Now she works as a teacher
E. ORIGIN/PLACE (noun + "de" + place noun)
When using preposition "de" to determine the origin of a noun, or the place it comes from, we use preposition "from" in English.
For example:
El coche de Alemania = The car from Germany
Vengo de Inglaterra = I come from England
Te conozco del colegio = I know you from school
F. CAUSE
NO RULES
Unlike Spanish, there are no set rules about prepositions establishing cause. It all depends on the structure, and very often, it involves phrasal verbs. Therefore, you simply have to learn how to translate these expressions into English and which prepositions to use (most frequently either "with" or "of")
Ella tiene miedo de la oscuridad = She is afraid of the dark
Él enfermó de gripe = He got sick with the flu.
Él enfermó de apendicitis = He got sick with appendicitis
Ella está harta de ti = She is sick of you / She is fed up with you.
G. FORM
NO RULES
In Spanish, the expressions "de lado", "de espalda", "de frente" are usually adverbial phrases. Therefore, there are no set rules to follow when translating these expressions into English. Again, it is a question of learning how to say them in English.
De lado = Next to
De espalda = Behind
De frente = In front
H. TIME
When it comes to talking the time of day in general terms, the preposition "de" + "time of day" translates into "in the" + "time of day".
For example:
Voy al cine de noche = I'm going to the cinema in the evening
La tienda está abierta de mañanas = The shop is open in the mornings.
OTHER PREPOSITIONS USED WITH "DE"
You should know that there are other prepositions in Spanish that are used together with "de". Unfortunately, there are no set rules for these expressions' equivalents in English. Again, it is a question of learning them on a case by case basis.
For example, "cerca de" is translated as "close to".
El colegio está cerca de mi casa = The school is close to my home
Siéntate cerca de mí = Sit close to me
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In conclusion, I hope this lesson has been useful. Hopefully now you will understand the different translations of preposition "de" and which translation is appropriate in each case.
I previously worked as a translator and my personal advice is that you try to move away from direct or tit-for-tat translations. When you write or speak in English, try your best to think in English. Just because one grammatical structure exists in Spanish it does not mean it should be literally translated into other languages. If you do this, you might get "lost in translation" (pun intended). Just keep practising your English!
Trust me, you want to avoid Gloria's frustration (Modern Family):
Good luck!
Best wishes,
Carla
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