Language/Spanish/Grammar/How-to-use-Ser-o-Estar-(verb-to-be)
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How to use Ser and Estar?
The Spanish language has two verbs that translate to "to be," namely "ser" and "estar," and learning the differences between them can be challenging for beginners. However, it's not an insurmountable hurdle, and with some practice, you can easily master these concepts.
Ser[edit | edit source]
This verb is used to attribute to the subject of the sentence a quality or condition of his own, for example
- "Yo soy Gary."
- "Él es Profesor."
- "Ustedes son altos."
This verb changes with the pronoun and it stays like this
Pronombre | Presente | Pronoun | Simple Present |
Yo | Soy | I | Am |
Tú | Eres | You | Are |
Él / Ella | Es | He / She | Is |
Nosotros | Somos | We | Are |
Ustedes | Son | You | Are |
Vosotros | Sois | You | Are |
Ellos / Ellas | Son | They | Are |
Eso / Esto | Es | It | Is |
It also changes when is used in all the verbal timesː
Pronombre | Pasado Simple | Pretérito Imperfecto | Futuro | Pronoun | Simple Past | Future |
Yo | Fui | Era | Seré | I | Was | Will be |
Tu | Fuiste | Eras | Serás | You | Were | Will be |
Él / Ella | Fue | Era | Será | He / She | Was | Will be |
Nosotros | Fuimos | Eramos | Seremos | We | Were | Will be |
Ustedes | Fueron | Eran | Serán | You | Were | Will be |
Vosotros | Fuisteis | Erais | Seréis | You | Were | Will be |
Ellos / Ellas | Fueron | Eran | Serán | They | Were | Will be |
Eso / Esto | Fue | Era | Será | It | Was | Will be |
Estar[edit | edit source]
- To exist, to locate a person or thing in a place, situation, condition, etc. Eg: Estoy feo, estoy viudo, estoy en Canadá, estoy encerrado.
- Staying a certain time in a place, in a situation. Eg: Estuvo aquí toda la tarde
- To be, to feel, to be in a certain way. It is constructed with passive adjectives or expressions expressing feelings, sensations, etc. And with adverbs so. Eg: Estoy triste, estoy bien, estoy cansado.
- To be such a day or date, or such month. Eg: Estamos a martes, Estamos a 3 de marzo
- Have some price. Eg: ¿En cuánto está el kilogramo de cebollas?
Pronombre | Presente | Pasado | Pretérito imperfecto | Futuro |
Yo | Estoy | Estaba | Estuve | Estaré |
Tu | Estás | Estabas | Estuviste | Estarás |
El / Ella | Está | Estaba | Estuvo | Estará |
Nosotros | Estamos | Estábamos | Estuvimos | Estaremos |
Ustedes | Están | Estaban | Estuvieron | Estarán |
Vosotros | Estáis | Estabais | Estuvisteis | Estaréis |
Ellos / Ellas | Están | Estaban | Estuvieron | Estarán |
Other Lessons[edit | edit source]
- Present Progressive
- Imperfect Tense
- Possessive Pronouns
- Sentense Structure
- Masculine and Feminine
- Past Participle
- Questions
- Be Polite
- ¿Pluscuamperfecto?
- Los pronombres personales