Common mistake using ‘to’ in Spanish

When I talk to my students or my English friends, they sometimes make the following mistake:

“Me gusta A jugar al fútbol.” 

“Quiero A comer chocolate.”

“Es difícil A entender el texto”

It is very common to think that “TO” is always translated as “A” in Spanish, but it is not true.

Let’s see when we have to use “TO” as “A” in Spanish and when “TO” is joined to the verb to be “infinitive form.”

“TO” translated as “A”:

• When we talk about direction or destination. We use motion verbs and then we use “A” and our destination.
• In English, you don’t use “TO” with some motions verbs (arrive, come…) but in Spanish, you have to use “A”

Examples:

• Voy a casa de mis abuelos (I go to my grandparent’s house)
• ¿Puedes moverte del sofá a la silla, por favor? (Could you move from the sofa to the chair, please?
• Mi amigo vino a mi casa ayer (My friend came home yesterday)
• Vuelvo a Sevilla el próximo año porque me ha gustado mucho (I return to Sevilla next year because I liked it a lot)
• ¿Quieres salir a la calle? (Do you want to go outside)

“TO” joined to the verb: Infinitive form:

• Check if we are talking about an action or a place.
• If it is an action, we don’t use “A”, we will use the verb in the infinitive form.
• If we have two verbs, the first one will be conjugated and the second one will be in infinitive form.

Examples:

• Yo quiero comer pizza (I want to eat pizza)
• ¿Puedes comprar leche en el supermercado? (Can you buy milk in the supermarket?)
• Tienes que terminar el proyecto mañana (You have to finish the project tomorrow)