Por vs para: practice sentences with answers

For por and para practice that sticks, fill in the 20 sentences below, then check the answer key: each answer names the rule, so a wrong guess teaches you something. If you have a Spanish quiz this week or a placement test coming up, start with sentences 1 to 8 and stop when you get two wrong in a row.

One rule does most of the work here. Para looks ahead to a goal; por explains the cause, the route or the exchange.

Why does para have fewer rules than por?

Para has fewer rules because it does one job: it points toward a goal. The RAE's Diccionario de la lengua española lists 10 senses for para and 27 for por (checked October 2026). Learn the short para list well. When no para use fits the sentence, por is the safer guess.

Verdict: five para uses cover most beginner sentences; everything else in the table goes to por. Our Spanish learning hub has the rest of the grammar guides.

Por and para practice: 20 sentences to fill in

Write por or para in each blank before you scroll to the answers. The first eight use structures the Instituto Cervantes curriculum places at A1-A2, such as cause with por and purpose with para + infinitive. Sentences 9 to 16 add B1-B2 structures like para que + subjunctive and por si. The last four are traps.

Level A1-A2

1. Este regalo es ___ mi madre.
2. Gracias ___ tu ayuda.
3. Estudio español ___ hablar con mis abuelos.
4. Caminamos ___ el parque todas las tardes.
5. Voy al gimnasio tres veces ___ semana.
6. Mañana salgo ___ Madrid.
7. Llamé a mi abuela ___ teléfono.
8. La tarea es ___ el lunes.

Level B1-B2

9. Compré la bicicleta ___ 200 dólares.
10. ___ mí, el examen fue fácil.
11. El museo fue diseñado ___ un arquitecto japonés.
12. Te dejo mis apuntes ___ que estudies.
13. Lleva un paraguas ___ si llueve.
14. ___ su edad, habla muy bien inglés.
15. Estuvimos en Sevilla ___ dos semanas.
16. Mi hermana está enferma, así que hoy trabajo ___ ella.

Traps

17. Trabajo ___ una empresa de software.
18. Lo hice ___ ti.
19. El tren a Madrid pasa ___ Toledo.
20. Los platos están ___ lavar.

Por vs para answer key: which one, and why?

Count one point per correct answer. Fifteen or more means you know the core rules; under ten means you should reread the table above and redo the A1-A2 block tomorrow. Every rule below matches a sense in the RAE dictionary.

Verdict: if you missed 12 or 13, the problem is the conjunction (para que, por si), not the preposition, so drill those as fixed chunks.

Which por vs para mistakes do English speakers make most?

English speakers mostly go wrong when English "for" hides two different ideas. "For" can mean a goal (para) or a reason, price or duration (por), and translating word by word picks the wrong one. These four slips come up again and again:

• Gracias para tu ayuda instead of gracias por.
• Estudié para tres horas for a duration, when it should be por tres horas (or just tres horas).
• Trabajo por Google, which sounds like you're covering a shift for Google. You mean para.
• Para qué when asking about a cause. ¿Para qué? asks "what for?"; ¿por qué? asks "why?".

A useful check: if you can replace "for" with "in order to", "to give to" or "by (a date)", write para. If you can replace it with "because of", "in exchange for" or "through", write por.

How do you make por and para automatic when you speak?

Por and para become automatic when you say them inside whole sentences, often, with someone who stops you when you get them wrong. A worksheet tests recognition; speaking tests whether the right word comes out without thinking. Take sentences 17 to 20, say both versions out loud and explain the difference in English.

Then use them in answers about your own life: where you're going this summer (para), how you got there (por), what you paid (por), who the souvenirs are for (para). Our guide to speaking Spanish practice alone has timed drills that fit this.

A tutor helps once you produce sentences faster than you can check them yourself. My own lessons are in English, not Spanish, but what worked for me is speaking for most of each lesson and getting corrected live. If you want that for Spanish, our guide to finding an online Spanish tutor covers prices and how to test one. Students with a certificate deadline can also read our DELE or SIELE comparison and the page for students preparing an exam.

Skip a tutor if por and para are your only problem: the 20 sentences above, redone in three days, will fix most of it for free. Not sure of your level? Take the level quiz first.