(in order) to direct the water into the tank is tranlated as para dirigir el agua hacia el tanque
I always thought that hacia was more towards and not necessarily entering. The lesson on hacia doesn't show entering.
For example, how could I distinguish between 'I walked towards the tunnel' and 'I walked into the tunnel' ?
Gracias
Hola David L.
Great question! You're right that hacia generally means 'towards' rather than indicating full entry into a place. However, in some cases, particularly with movement or direction, hacia can imply an intended destination without necessarily specifying whether entry occurs.
To distinguish between 'towards' and 'into' in Spanish, you could say Caminé hacia el túnel for 'I walked towards the tunnel', which means approaching but not necessarily entering. On the other hand, Caminé dentro del túnel or Entré en el túnel would clearly indicate entry, meaning 'I walked into the tunnel'.
For the phrase 'to direct the water into the tank', a more precise alternative could be para dirigir el agua dentro del tanque, emphasizing that the water goes inside, or para dirigir el agua al interior del tanque as a more formal option. That said, in many contexts, hacia el tanque can still imply that the water is directed to where it needs to go, even if the focus isn’t explicitly on entry.
Hope this helps! Let me know if you have any further doubts. 😊
Hasta pronto
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