Aqui vs Alli vs Aca vs Ahi vs Alla: The Ultimate Guide You Need + Examples
“No, mami, aquí no están las llaves. Deben de estar allá. Busque bien, en la cocina, deben estar por ahí, estoy segura”. (“No, mommy, the keys are not here. They must be there. Look well, in the kitchen, they must be somewhere there, I’m sure.”)
Confused yet?
You’re not alone! But we’re fixing that today, right here: your ultimate guide to aqui vs alli vs aca vs ahi vs alla.
Teacher Paulisima from Spring Spanish will explain everything you need to know, so you will never struggle with: Aquí (Here), “Allí” (There), “Acá” (Here), “Ahí” (There), “Allá” (Over there), and so on, again!
¡Empecemos! (Let’s begin!)
Let’s have a closer look at the most common adverbs of place.
1. Ahí (in THAT place – to THAT place)
Ahí significa: en ESE lugar. (“Ahí” means: in THAT place.)
Y también significa: a ESE lugar. (And it also means: to THAT place.)
Let’s see some examples with the first meaning:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Ahí venden tacos. | There, they sell tacos. |
| Ahí hay una frutería. | There, there is a fruit shop. |
| Ahí venden helados. | There, they sell ice cream. |
| Espérame ahí. No te muevas. | Wait for me there. Do not move. |
| Yo nací ahí. | I was born there. |
| Yo crecí ahí. | I grew up there. |
| Ahí está el detalle. | You’re missing the point. (Lit.: “There is the detail.”) |
Now, let’s see some examples with the second meaning “to that place”:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Yo quiero ir ahí. | I want to go there. |
| Vamos ahí. | Let’s go there. |
| ¿A qué hora piensas llegar ahí? | What time do you think you’ll arrive there? |
2. Allí and Allá (in that place OVER THERE)
“Allí” and “allá” both mean: “en AQUEL lugar” (in that place over there).
“Ese” and “aquel” are similar, but not quite the same in Spanish.
It would be quite useful to completely understand the difference between “ahí” and “allí” and “allá”.
Do stay until the end to discover a phrase that will give you so much street credit in beautiful and beloved Mexico.
Let’s continue. “Allí” and “allá” are equivalent.
Both refer to a place that is at a distance to the people talking about it. There’s a subtle difference between “allí” and “allá”.
For the most part, feel free to use “allí” and “allá” interchangeably, but you have to know that “allá” admits a certain degree of comparison. You can ask someone to scoot over más allá or más para allá, but never más para “allí”.
Fun fact: In Spanish, when people pass away, they go to “El más allá” (“The great beyond”).
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¡Ah! ¡Qué bonito es Nueva York. Allí vi nevar por primera vez. | OH! How pretty is New York. There, I saw snow for the first time. |
| ¿Has ido al centro histórico? Por allí puedes encontrar ofertas increíbles. | Have you been to the historic center? There you can find a lot of incredible deals. |
Now some chunks, or pre-made phrases with “allá” (there) that will help you become fluent much faster.)
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Ya vas para allá? | Are you on your way there? |
| Ya voy para allá. | I’m on my way there. |
| Allá nos vemos. | See you there. |
Let’s see all of the adverbs of place in a real Spanish conversation:
Hola amiga, ¿qué onda? ¿Si vas a ir a la fiesta?
(Hello friend, what’s up? Are you going to the party?)
Todo bien amiguita. Sí, apenas me estoy arreglando. ¿Y tú? ¿Ya vas para allá?
(All good little friend. Yes, I’m just getting ready. And you? Are you on your way there?)
Sí, amiga, ya voy para allá.
(Yes, friend, I’m on my way there.)
Bueno, ya casi estoy lista y salgo para allá. Allá nos vemos.
(Well, I’m almost ready, and I’ll be on my way. See you there.)
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3. Aquí and Acá (Here, close, near)
Over here. Both mean pretty much the same thing, both “aquí” and “acá” refer to the place where the speaker is located. Except that “acá”, is a little more imprecise, and it allows for some degree of comparison.
Like in these phrases:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Acércate lo más acá que puedas. | Get as close to here as you can. |
| Ella se aproximó tan acá como le fue posible. | She came as close to here as was possible to her. |
Now, let’s see more examples:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Aquí en la ciudad de México, no hay verano, porque llueve todo el tiempo. | Here in Mexico City, there’s no summer, because it rains all the time. |
| Aquí como tacos de cabeza. | Here I eat beef head tacos. |
| Aquí compro mis frutas y verduras. | Here, I buy my fruits and vegetables. |
| No veas el Super Bowl sola, vente para acá. | Don’t watch the Super Bowl by yourself, come over here. |
| Acá en México, la gente es muy buena. | Here in Mexico, people are very nice. |
CHUNK ALERT!
Here’s a phrase that would impress your Mexican friends. “Muy acá”, very here? We use this phrase to describe someone or something that’s arrogant, posh, pretentious:
- No me cae bien Bruce Wayne, se cree el muy acá. (I don’t like Bruce Wayne, he thinks too high of himself.)
- No me gusta ese tipo de bares, muy acá. (I don’t like those types of bars, too pretentious.)
- La boda estuvo genial. El lugar estaba muy acá. (The wedding was awesome. The venue was very posh.)
4. Review adverbs of place in Spanish
Time for a review! Take a look at this table:
| Adverb | Meaning | Used in a phrase |
|---|---|---|
| Ahí | En ese lugar. (In that place.) A ese lugar. (To that place.) | Ahí se casó mi hermano. (My brother got married there.)Me gustaría ir ahí. (I’d like to go there.) |
| Allí, Allá | En aquel lugar. (In that place.) | Cuando termine de trabajar, nos vemos allá. (When I finish working, we’ll see each other over there.) Yo vivía allí. (I used to live there.) |
| Aquí | En este lugar. (In this place.) A este lugar. (To this place.) | De aquí soy. (I am from here.) Aquí te veo. (I’ll see you here.) |
| Acá | En este lugar o cerca de él.(In this place or near it.) A este lugar o cerca de él. (To this place or near it.) | Acá entre nos… no me gusta la pizza. (Here between us… I don’t like pizza.)Por acá te esperamos. (We’ll wait for you over here.”) |
Got it? Now let’s practice!
5. Practice: Find the correct solution for aqui vs alli vs aca vs ahi vs alla
- Te estoy esperando en mi casa. _____ nos vemos. (I’m waiting for you in my house. See you here.)
If you answered with AQUÍ or even ACÁ you’re correct!
- No me cae bien Bruce Wayne, se cree el _________. (I don’t like Bruce Wayne, he thinks too high of himself.)
¡EL MUY ACÁ! Recuerda que esta frase es muy mexicana. (Remember that this phrase is very Mexican.)
- Voy rumbo a la fiesta. ¿Tú ya estás _________? (I’m on my way to the party. Are you there already?)
Allá would be a great answer.
- Estoy en Ciudad de México. _____ no hay un buen verano. (I’m in Mexico City. Here is not a good summer.)
- Cuando la gente muere, se va al más ____. (When people die, they go to the great beyond.)
