Spanish prepositions: EN vs. SOBRE
I got a special request from Mike Daye, aka @EvilPundit, one of my people on Twitter, for an explanation of the Spanish prepositions EN and SOBRE, so here goes.
“EN” is a frequently-used preposition. It can be translated with various meanings in English such as in, by, at, or on, depending on the context.
Here’s a break down on when to use EN in Spanish. Obviously, there may be exceptions but this will give you some basic guidelines.
To indicate location
Vivo en una ciudad. (I live in a city.)
Busca en ese cajón. (Look in that drawer.)
Hoy me quedo en casa porque no me encuentro bien. (Today I’m staying at home because I don’t feel well.)
To place something in a time frame or time period
Ernest Hemingway nació en el siglo XIX. (Hemingway was born in the 19th-century.)
Acabaré en una hora. (I’ll finish in an hour.)
With movement verbs and modes of transportation
Vine en taxi. (I came by taxi.) Me encanta viajar en tren. (I love traveling by train.)
To indicate what a topic or subject is about
Pienso en ti. (I’m thinking about you.) Luis es experto en artes marciales. (Luis is an expert in martial arts.)
“EN” is also used in fixed expressions like “en voz alta” (in a loud voice), “en vez de” (instead of), “en medio de” (in the middle of), etc.
The only possible overlap in meaning between EN and SOBRE is with location. However, sobre is used to indicate a more precise location, a position that is above something else, while en is used with a more general meaning of location.
Think of “sobre” as the equivalent of “encima de” (on top of).
“Deja las llaves sobre la mesilla.” [ Leave the keys on the nightstand (on top of the nightstand).]
Chicos, por favor, no pongáis los pies sobre la mesa. [Guys, please, don’t put your feet on the table (on top of the table).]
Las cajas están colocadas unas sobre otras. (The boxes are stacked on top of one another.)
Eduardo está muy agobiado. Son demasaidas las responsabilides que recaen sobre él. [Eduardo is very stressed out. He’s got too many obligations weighing him down. (Literal translation: “…that are falling on top of him.”)]
Sobre also has the meaning of “about” in Spanish. The preposition “acerca de” has the same meaning.
Tenemos que hablar sobre lo que pasó ayer. Tenemos que hablar acerca de lo que pasó ayer. (We have to talk about what happened yesterday.)
¿Qué sabes tú sobre este asunto? What do you know about this topic?
Sobre can also be used to give an approximation, what we’d translate in English as “around” or “around about.”
Ayer llamé a tu casa sobre las seis de la tarde. ¿Dónde estabas? (I called you around 6 p.m. yesterday. Where were you?)
Sobre is a bit of a weird preposition because in addition to being a preposition, it is also a noun (which means “envelope”), but it’s always obvious, from the context, when it is being used as a noun. Necesito comprar un sobre para enviar esa carta. (I need to buy an envelope in order to send that letter.)
Thanks for the mention. Jejeje un sobre es un envelope tambien.
Muchas gracias, Elena. ‘Sobre’ me ha desconcertado.
Thank you for the explanation. I had heard people use “sobre las diez” to indicate time, but I had never really thought about the English translation. I thought that “sobre las diez” meant “at ten” and I hadn’t considered “at AROUND ten.”
Also, about “sobre” and “encima de” I have a question. I think we could translate “sobre” as “over” and “encima de” as “on top of?”
For example, “The lamp hangs over the table.” – “La lampara está colgada sobre la mesa.” and not “La lampara está colgada encima de la mesa.”
And for “encima de”: “The lamp is on the table.” – “La lampara está encima de la mesa.” or “La lampara está sobre la mesa.”
I think I might be trying to think too hard about this! lol