Differentiating between Por and Para in Spanish The prepositions por (pohr) and para (pah-rah) in Spanish cause

a lot of problems when youre trying to learn the language, because both words mean for in English. The best way to differentiate between por and para is to know the specific ways in which they should be used. The preposition por shows the following:

Motion/place: Caminan por las calles. (They walk through the streets.) Means/manner: Lo envo por correo areo. (Im sending it by airmail.) In exchange for/substitution: Voy a hacerlo por t. (Im going to do it for you.) Duration of an action: Trabajo por una hora. (Im working for an hour.) Indefinite time period: Duerme por la tarde. (He sleeps in the afternoon.) On behalf of: La firmo por Ud. (I am signing it on your behalf.) Per: Me pagan por da. (They pay me per day.)

The preposition para shows the following:

Destination/place: Salimos para Madrid. (We are leaving for Madrid.) Destination/person: Esto es para Ud. (This is for you.)

A future time limit: Es para maana. (Its for tomorrow.) Purpose/goal: Nado para divertirme. (I swim to have fun.) Use/function: Es un cepillo para el pelo. (Its a hair brush.) Comparisons: Para su edad, lee bien. (For her age, she reads well.) Opinion: Para m es demasiado crudo. (For me its too rare.)