There are 2 main translations of in in Spanish

: in¹ IN²

in¹

en, prep

Pronunciation /ɪn/

See Spanish definition of en

preposition

1
- 1.1(indicating place, location)
  en
  in the drawer/kitchen — en el cajón/en la cocina
  in Detroit/Japan — en Detroit/en (el) Japón
  our friends in Detroit — nuestros amigos de Detroit
  he's in a meeting — está en una reunión
  I've got something in my eye — tengo algo en el ojo
  who's that in the photo? — ¿quién es ese de la foto?
  in here/there — aquí/allí dentro
  in life/business — en la vida/los negocios
  to go out/lie in the sun — salir/tumbarse al sol
  in the rain — bajo la lluvia
  you can't go out in this weather — no puedes salir con este tiempo
  he was sitting in the dark/shade — estaba sentado en la oscuridad / en lo oscuro/a / en la sombra
  in the moonlight — a la luz de la luna
- 1.2
  de
  the highest mountain in Italy — la montaña más alta de Italia
  the best restaurant in town — el mejor restaurante de la ciudad
2
(indicating movement)
he went in the shop — entró en la tienda
- they jumped in the pool — se tiraron a la piscina
- come in here — ven aquí dentro
- go in there — entra ahí
3
- 3.1(during)
  come in the afternoon/morning — ven por la tarde/por la mañana
  at four o'clock in the morning/afternoon — a las cuatro de la mañana/tarde
  in spring/January/1924 — en primavera/enero/1924
  never in my life — nunca en mi vida
  I haven't seen her in years — hace años que no la veo
  in old age — en la vejez
  in her old age she became more tolerant — de vieja se volvió más tolerante
  he's in his forties — tiene cuarenta y tantos
- 3.2(at the end of)
  dentro de
  in two months / two months' time — dentro de dos meses
  I'll be back in a minute — vuelvo dentro de un minuto / en un minuto
  she's going in two weeks — se va dentro de dos semanas
- 3.3(in the space of)
  en
  she did it in three hours — lo hizo en tres horas
4
- 4.1(indicating manner)
  en
  in a low voice — en voz baja
  in dollars — en dólares
  in French — en francés
  they sat in a circle — se sentaron en un círculo
  in rows/groups — en filas/grupos
  in twos — de dos en dos
  cut it in half — córtalo por la mitad
  they came in their thousands — vinieron miles y miles
  to work in wood — trabajar con madera
  to paint in oils — pintar al óleo
  in bronze/silk — de / en bronce/seda
  write in ink/pencil — escriba con tinta/lápiz
  sonata in A minor — sonata en la menor
- 4.2(wearing)
  he turned up in a suit — apareció de traje
  the woman in the yellow hat — la mujer del sombrero amarillo
  she was all in green — iba toda de verde
  I look terrible in this — esto me queda horrible
  are you going in that dress? — ¿vas a ir con ese vestido?
5
(indicating circumstances, state)
in sickness and in health — en la salud y en la enfermedad
- in danger/a terrible state — en peligro/muy mal estado
- the company is in difficulties/debt — la empresa está pasando dificultades/está endeudada
- to be in a good mood — estar de buen humor
- they gazed in admiration/disbelief — miraban admirados/incrédulos
- he's in pain — está dolorido
- they live in luxury — viven en la opulencia
6
(indicating occupation, membership, participation)
en
he's in insurance/advertising — trabaja en seguros/publicidad
- I was in the army — estuve en el ejército
- are you in this scene? — ¿actúas / sales en esta escena?
- we're all in this together — estamos todos metidos en esto
7
(indicating personal characteristics)
it's not in his nature / character to bear a grudge — no es de las personas que guardan rencor
- that's rare in a man of his age — eso es poco común en un hombre de su edad
- it's not in her to be deceitful — es incapaz de engañar a la gente
- I never thought she had it in her to get that far — nunca creí que iba a ser capaz de llegar tan lejos
8
(in respect of, as regards)
it's 20cm in width — mide / tiene 20cm de ancho
- they are eight in number — son ocho
- low in calories — bajo en calorías
- she's deaf in one ear — es sorda de un oído
- they are very similar in character — tienen un carácter muy parecido
9
(indicating ratio)
one in four — uno de cada cuatro
- she's a girl in a million — es única
10
- 10.1
  in so doing, they set a precedent — al hacerlo, sentaron precedente

adverb

1
- 1.1(inside)
  is the cat in? — ¿el gato está dentro?
  in you go! — ¡entra!
  she's in for theft — está en la cárcel por robo
  Mr Gilburn, who failed to appear in court, is thought to have moved in with a friend who lives locally.
  He was in New York for the premiere of Tommy in 1975 and had decided to pop in on his admirer while he was in town.
  The phone line for the office was put in on time and later today I am hoping to set up my internet connection.
  Within the walls of the medina, the buildings close in on you, and you are taken into cool shadow.
  ‘Anna! Are you alright?’ Evan asked, jumping in after me.
  The we went in and sat down and lots of other people were there.
  There he burst in on an astonished young American couple and ran past them into a bedroom.
  Apparently, we are going to be able to put plastic in with our cans and bottles.
  They were finally caught out when one brother got their shifts mixed up and walked in on a romantic meal for two.
  Two weeks later, I had another appointment in the city and I was supposed to go in with my son again.
  I think the child had been feeding the ducks when he fell in.
  The story goes that he was working in a café one night when a pop star popped in for some grub.
  I had no idea he was going to be there until he walked in with his girlfriend.
  I was the one who didn't want to get too serious, so I was surprised when he asked me to move in with him.
  If you'd been here an hour ago, you'd have seen the girl come in with her friend.
  Teams are reminded that bonus points are not awarded when the result card is not sent in on time.
- 1.2(at home, work)
  is Lisa in? — ¿está Lisa?
  there was nobody in — no había nadie
  Mr Strauch isn't in today — hoy no está / no ha venido el señor Strauch
  Jane's never in before nine — Jane nunca llega antes de las nueve
2
- 2.1(in position)
  she had her curlers/teeth in — llevaba / tenía los rulos/dientes puestos
  the clutch has to be fully in — hay que meter el embrague hasta el fondo
  She had previously enjoyed food with nuts in, including breakfast cereals, and she had eaten chicken curries at other restaurants.
  Staying in on a day like this is criminal.
  She turned to the government for help and they found her an apartment for her to live in.
  Cases of domestic violence rose as families stayed in on New Year's Eve to avoid the bad weather.
  Shut in with his cronies, he sees the world as his enemy and opposition to his will as personal affront.
  Kathy gave me a cup of tea with sugar in to help calm me.
  We've had them for a good few years now - they were in with another box of books we bought.
  Sixth grade was handled by general instructors, and each class was locked in with one instructor all day long.
- 2.2(at destination)
  the train isn't in yet — el tren no ha llegado todavía
  application forms must be in by October 5 — las solicitudes deben entregarse antes del 5 de octubre
  the harvest is already in — ya se ha recogido la cosecha
  Their first pieces of work would be due in on Wednesday or Thursday of first week.
  I'm a bit disappointed that my flight out is Friday afternoon, which allowing for time differences gets in at 8pm.
  Bearing in mind the flight is due in at 11.20 pm, you'll watch its progress on the internet up to 20 minutes before it's due to land.
  Entries must be in by 5pm.
  Becky's train actually managed to get in on time.
- 2.3(available, in stock)
  is the book I ordered in yet? — ¿ha llegado ya el libro que encargué?
- 2.4(in power)
  en el poder
  they're back in — están nuevamente en el poder
3
(involved)
→ see also get in with
we were in on the planning stage — participamos en la planificación
- we're doing the bank job tonight: are you in or not? — esta noche asaltamos el banco ¿te apuntas o no?
- you're in for a big surprise — te vas a llevar una buena sorpresa
- I'm in for the 100m — me he apuntado a los 100 metros
4
(in time)
más tarde
three weeks in — tres semanas más tarde

adjective

1
- 1.1 informal (fashionable)
  black is in this season — el negro está de moda / es lo que se lleva esta temporada
  jazz was the in thing — el jazz era lo que estaba de moda
  the in place — el lugar de moda
  Luigi's was a large and crowded restaurant that was clearly the in place for the in-crowd.
  The very in words are slammin' and rockin'.
  This year, monochromatic colors are the in thing.
  In addition to statement T-shirts, graphic T-shirts are in this year.
  Way back when beards were in, mawkish mystics brought forth the concept album.
  He even let his membership lapse at Au Bar, the in club.
- 1.2(exclusive, private)
  an in joke — un chiste para iniciados
  the in crowd — el grupito
2
(in tennis, badminton, etc)
the ball was in — la pelota fue buena
- Before I even came off the pick, I felt the shot was in.
- As you can see, I held my finish and barely looked up even as the ball went in.
- I don't think I got any first serves in today.