mediante

Mediante is a Spanish preposition used to indicate the means, instrument, or method by which an action is carried out. It is commonly translated as by means of, through, or via. In formal or written Spanish, mediante often emphasizes the mechanism or intermediary involved rather than the path or agent. It can introduce a noun phrase, as in mediante un acuerdo, or a verb phrase through a gerund or accompanying noun, for example mediante la firma de un contrato or mediante la cooperación de varias partes. It is frequently chosen in legal, administrative, or technical contexts where the procedure or process is being described.

Usage notes and alternatives: While mediante can be replaced by a through phrase such as por medio de or a través de, each expresses a slightly different nuance. Por medio de tends to be neutral and common in everyday language; a través de focuses on the route or channel. Mediante, by contrast, foregrounds the intermediary or mechanism used to achieve a result and is therefore common in formal discourse.

Etymology: the term comes from Latin, with a form used in medieval Latin roughly meaning through or by means of, related to the concept of the middle or intermediary. It has cognates in other Romance languages, such as Portuguese mediante and Italian mediante, with closely related meanings.

Examples: El pago se realizó mediante transferencia electrónica. La resolución se adoptó mediante votación. El informe se elaboró mediante la recopilación de datos.

See also: por medio de, a través de, instrumento (grammatical term), preposición.