Why Entrar Is More Than "To Enter"
Entrar is the verb of doors, starts, and things that do or do not fit. In Spain it takes en (entrar en la casa), while much of Latin America prefers a (entrar a la casa). Both are understood everywhere.
Learn these six patterns as whole chunks and you will invite, start, and explain without translating word by word.
Pattern 1: ¿Puedo entrar? — "May I come in?"
Say it at an office door or a friend's home. The polite answer is adelante or pasa. For more with poder, see [Poder] Chunks.
- ¿Puedo entrar? — May I come in?
- ¿Se puede entrar con perros? — Are dogs allowed in?
- Prohibido entrar sin permiso. — No entry without permission.
Chunk to learn:
¿Puedo entrar? / ¿Se puede entrar con + [thing]?
Pattern 2: Entra, estás en tu casa — "Come in, make yourself at home"
The warm welcome. Use entra for tú and entre for usted. Spanish hosts often add estás en tu casa to put you at ease.
- Entra, no te quedes ahí. — Come in, don't stand there.
- Entren, por favor. — Come in, please.
- Entra, estás en tu casa. — Come in, make yourself at home.
Chunk to learn:
Entra / Entre / Entren + [estás en tu casa]
Pattern 3: Entrar a trabajar — "To start work"
Spanish uses entrar for the moment a work or school day begins. The chunk is entrar a plus a time or an infinitive, and the opposite is salir. For more, see [Ir] Chunks.
- Entro a trabajar a las ocho. — I start work at eight.
- ¿A qué hora entras? — What time do you start?
- Los niños entran a clase a las nueve. — The kids start class at nine.
Chunk to learn:
Entrar a trabajar / ¿A qué hora entras?
Pattern 4: Entrar en calor — "To warm up"
Entrar en plus a state means to move into it. Entrar en calor is to warm up, either your body or a group, and entrar en materia is to get to the point.
- Corre un poco para entrar en calor. — Run a bit to warm up.
- Con un café entro en calor. — A coffee warms me up.
- Vamos a entrar en materia. — Let's get down to business.
Chunk to learn:
Entrar en calor / Entrar en materia
Pattern 5: No me entra — "I can't get it in"
The thing is the subject and you receive the result. No me entra says something does not fit, physically or mentally. It is the chunk for tight shoes and for ideas you cannot take in. For more with me, see Object Pronouns Chunks.
- Este pantalón ya no me entra. — These pants don't fit me anymore.
- No me entra en la cabeza. — I just can't wrap my head around it.
- No me entra más comida. — I can't fit any more food.
Chunk to learn:
No me entra(n) + [thing] / No me entra en la cabeza
Pattern 6: Entrar en detalles — "To go into detail"
For topics, entrar en means to get into them. The chunk is perfect for politely avoiding a subject: no quiero entrar en detalles. It is also the way to say something is not part of your plans.
- No quiero entrar en detalles. — I don't want to go into details.
- No vamos a entrar en eso ahora. — We're not going to get into that now.
- Eso no entra en mis planes. — That isn't part of my plans.
Chunk to learn:
No quiero entrar en detalles / Eso no entra en mis planes
Entrar en vs. Entrar a
Both prepositions are correct. Spain prefers entrar en and much of Latin America prefers entrar a, but you will hear both. Pick the one you hear most and stay consistent. For another verb of opening doors, see [Abrir] Chunks.
Start with ¿puedo entrar? and no quiero entrar en detalles. You will use both the next time you speak Spanish.
This post is part of the Spanish Chunk Series — a growing collection of chunk patterns for natural Spanish.