Spanish Time Prepositions: Using a, en, and de for Times, Days, and Dates
Learn to say at 7 p.m., on Monday, and in July in Latin American Spanish using a, en, and de, with clear patterns and examples.
By TheaFirst conversations · Yapr Learn
In Spanish, time expressions use different prepositions than English, and they do not match in, on, and at one-to-one. The most common are a for clock times, en for months, seasons, and years, and de for dates and parts of the day. This lesson teaches the core patterns for saying when something happens, using broadly useful Latin American Spanish. You will practice asking and answering questions about schedules, days, and dates.
By the end, you can…
- say what time something happens using a + time.
- say what day or date something happens using el + day and de + date.
- say in a month, season, or year using en.
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
Checking available voices…
a las siete de la tarde
at 7 p.m.
ah las SYEH-teh deh lah TAR-deh
Use a + las + number + de la tarde for afternoon and evening clock times.
el lunes
on Monday
el LOO-nes
Use el + day of the week for a single occurrence. Days are not capitalized in Spanish.
en julio
in July
en HOO-lyoh
Use en + month for a month. Months are not capitalized.
el 5 de mayo
on May 5th
el SEEN-koh deh MAH-yoh
Use el + number + de + month for dates. This is the standard date order.
por la mañana
in the morning
por lah mah-NYAH-nah
Use por la mañana, por la tarde, or por la noche for general parts of the day, not a specific clock time.
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
For clock times, use a: a las ocho (at eight), a la una (at one). For days and dates, use el: el martes (on Tuesday), el 3 de abril (on April 3rd). For months, seasons, and years, use en: en enero (in January), en verano (in summer), en 2025 (in 2025). For parts of the day, use por: por la noche (in the evening or at night).
When to use it
Use a when you name an exact hour: La clase empieza a las diez. Use el for a specific day or date: Trabajo el sábado. Use en for a broader period: Viajamos en diciembre. Use por for a general part of the day: Leo por la mañana. If you mention both a day and a time, combine them: el lunes a las nueve (on Monday at nine).
Asking and answering
To ask when something happens, say ¿Cuándo es? or ¿A qué hora es? Answer with the correct preposition: Es a las tres. Es el viernes. Es en agosto. For dates, ask ¿Qué fecha es hoy? and answer Hoy es el 12 de octubre. Notice that Spanish uses de between the day number and the month, not an ordinal like 'twelfth'.
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
¿A qué hora empieza la reunión?
What time does the meeting start?ah keh OH-rah em-PYEH-sah lah reh-oo-NYOHNEmpieza a las dos de la tarde, el martes.
It starts at 2 p.m. on Tuesday.em-PYEH-sah ah las dohs deh lah TAR-deh, el MAR-tes¿Y la presentación es en abril?
And is the presentation in April?ee lah preh-sen-tah-SYOHN es en ah-BREELSí, es el 8 de abril, por la mañana.
Yes, it is on April 8th, in the morning.see, es el OH-choh deh ah-BREEL, por lah mah-NYAH-nahA little context goes a long way
In Latin American Spanish, days and months are written in lowercase, and dates usually follow the order day + de + month. In speech, many speakers say la una for one o'clock, not una, because it is feminine. Regional differences exist: in some areas, people prefer por la tarde for afternoon, while others say en la tarde. Both are understood, but por is the more general choice in this lesson.
One thing to watch for
Saying en lunes for 'on Monday' or a julio for 'in July'.
Try this instead: Use el lunes for a specific Monday and en julio for in July. Example: Trabajo el lunes. Viajo en julio.
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1How do you say 'at 9 p.m.' in Spanish?
Show a sample answer
a las nueve de la noche
Use a + las + number + de la noche for evening clock times. You could also say a las nueve de la tarde in some regions, but de la noche is clear for 9 p.m.
2How do you say 'on Wednesday' for one specific Wednesday?
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el miércoles
Use el + day for a single occurrence. If you mean every Wednesday, Spanish uses los miércoles.
3How do you say 'in December'?
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en diciembre
Use en + month for months. Remember that months are not capitalized in Spanish.
Use a for clock times, el for days and dates, en for months, seasons, and years, and por for general parts of the day.
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