On the one hand, on the other hand in Spanish
The most common connectives to express "on (the) one hand.., on the other hand" in Spanish are: "Por un lado..., por otro lado..."
They are used to enumerate/order two different ideas in a sentence; usually creating a contrast between the two ideas in the sentence.
In addition, also, moreover... in Spanish
Bear in mind that sometimes it simply "adds" (plus..., in addition..., also..., moreover..., besides...) an extra element.
Have a look at these examples:
Por un lado, los precios han subido, pero por otro lado, los impuestos han bajado.On one hand, the prices have gone up, but on the other, taxes have gone down.
Está lloviendo, así que si vamos al cine, por un lado, veremos la película nueva y por otro lado, no nos mojaremos con la lluvia.It's raining, so if we go to the cinema, we'll watch the new film and what's more, we won't get wet in the rain.
Con la tecnología en las aulas, por un lado, los estudiantes están contentos y por otro lado, es más interactivo.With technology in the classrooms, students are happy, and in addition, it's more interactive.
Por un lado [first idea], por otro lado [second idea]
It is important to know that:
Although in English the word used is "hand", in Spanish it is "lado" (side); literally "for one side..., for another side"
Sometimes, the first part is omitted and we only use "por otro lado":
La construcción de la nueva urbanización va a crear mucho empleo. Por otro lado, habrá más tráfico de camiones por la mañana.The construction of the new residential estate is going to create a lot of employment. On the other hand, there will be more construction traffic in the morning.
Just like in English sometimes we omit "lado" in the second part:
Por un lado, estoy de acuerdo con la institución del matrimonio, pero por otro, me encanta la idea de ser soltera.On one hand, I agree with the institution of marriage but on the other [hand], I love the idea of being single.
Bear in mind that we also use "Por otra parte" as a synonym of "Por otro lado":
No tengo dinero para comprar otro portátil. Por otra parte, hago casi todo mi trabajo en la tableta.I have no money to buy another laptop. Besides, I do nearly all my work on the tablet.
See also:
Want to make sure your Spanish sounds confident?
We’ll map your knowledge and give you free lessons to focus on your
gaps and mistakes. Start your Brainmap today »
Find your Spanish level for FREE
Test your Spanish to the CEFR standard