hacia adelante
/aθja adelante/from spelling rules
The English phrase 'moving forward' can be translated into Spanish as hacia adelante.
hacia adelante is used to describe moving in a direction toward the front. If you wish to express the concept of 'to progress' or 'to advance' in a more formal way, you may use the verb progresar.
Which one should you use?
In many contexts, you can use the word adelante alone to mean 'forward' without the preposition hacia. If you want to express the opposite direction, 'backward', use hacia atrás instead of hacia adelante.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Spain, the phrase de ahora en adelante is used frequently. In Latin America, the expression de aquí en adelante may be used instead of de ahora en adelante and de acá en adelante may be used instead of en lo sucesivo.
How does it change in a sentence?
As an adverbial phrase of direction, hacia adelante does not change its form based on the gender or number of the subject.
How do you pronounce it?
/aθja adelante/
Did you know?
- The word hacia comes from the Latin phrase faciem ad, which literally means 'facing towards' or 'toward the face'.
- In Spain, if someone says ¡Adelante! when you are at a door, they are not telling you to move forward, but inviting you to 'come in'.
- While hacia adelante describes physical movement, the phrase adelante can also be used as an interjection to tell someone to 'go ahead' or 'proceed' in a conversation.
Examples in context
- Si no puedes volar entonces corre. Si no puedes correr entonces camina. Si no puedes caminar entonces arrástrate, pero hagas lo que hagas, sigue moviéndote hacia adelante.If you can't fly, then run. If you can't run, then walk. If you can't walk, then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward.This sentence is useful for showing how to express the idea of continuing to move forward despite difficulties using hacia adelante.Tatoeba #6286530 by Adelpa, translation #6286518 by Adelpa
- A partir de ahora, llevaremos a cabo un enfoque más eficiente.From now on, we will carry out a more efficient approach.
- En adelante, se establecerán nuevas regulaciones.In the future, new regulations will be established.
- Debemos progresar para alcanzar nuestros objetivos.We must progress to achieve our goals.
- De ahora en adelante, dormiré más temprano.From now on, I will sleep earlier.
- En lo sucesivo, ahorraré más dinero.In the future, I will save more money.
- Si queremos mejorar, debemos avanzar juntos.If we want to improve, we must move forward together.
- El coche avanzaba hacia adelante lentamente.The car was moving forward slowly.
- Debes mirar siempre hacia adelante al caminar.You must always look forward while walking.
Example conversation
María and Alejandro are walking in a park.
- MaríaAlejandro, camina un poco más hacia adelante.Alejandro, walk a little further forward.
- AlejandroEstá bien, María, ya voy hacia adelante.Okay, María, I am moving forward now.
- María¡Perfecto! Así podemos ver mejor el lago.Perfect! That way we can see the lake better.
- AlejandroTienes razón, el paisaje es hermoso.You are right, the landscape is beautiful.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries adelante, hacia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
