El verbo Ser: To Be And estar

Usos del verbo " SER "

Estar

 

Usos de " ser y estar "

TO BE

A.     Ser

1.      Identificación  (José es mi amigo.  Soy Rebecca.)

2.      Posesión (Es nuestro cuaderno.  Los lápices son de Miguel.)

3.      Profesión (Somos carpinteros.  Marta es profesora.)

4.      Nacionalidad / origen  (Luis es guatemalteco.  Somos de Francia.  Es de Nueva York.  Mis zapatos son italianos.)

5.      La hora, los días, los meses, las fechas, las estaciones, los años  (Son las siete de la tarde.  Es lunes.  Es el 25 de febrero de 2005.)

6.      Características  (Es alta y simpática.  Uds. son generosos y reservados.  Soy mala.)

7.      “Tener lugar” “ocurrir” [= to take place (for an event)] (La fiesta es a las ocho.  Todos los conciertos son en el estadio.  La barbacoa es en la playa.)

B.     Estar

1. Condiciones  [estar + adjetivo] (Estamos enfermos.  Están tristes. Estoy cansada.)  (How you feel physically, mentally, emotionally.)
2. Resultado de una acción [El libro está abierto (someone opened it).  Las ventanas están rotas (someone broke them).]
3. Colocaciones  (Mis libros están en mi mochila.  Ellos están en Costa Rica.  Madrid está en España.
4. El presente progresivo (Estás estudiando para el examen.  Estamos bailando.  Estoy comiendo pizza.)  (Only to be used for what is happening at this moment)  (To be + -ing en inglés)

C.     Hacer—el tiempo (In Spanish it makes or does the weather but it is translated to English as to be)

1. ¿Qué tiempo hace?
2. Hace sol
3. Hace frío
4. Hace calor
5. Hace fresco
6. Hace buen tiempo / Hace mal tiempo
7. Hace viento
3. Tener—para las personas  [tener + sustantivo (noun)]  (In Spanish you “have hunger, you have thirst, you have fear, etc. so we use “tener” but is is translated to English as to be)
1. tener frío (m) = to be cold
2. tener calor (m) = to be hot
3. tener hambre (f) = to be hungry
4. tener sed (f) = to be thirsty
5. tener prisa (f) = to be in a hurry
6. tener sueño (m) = to be sleepy
7. tener miedo (m) = to be afraid
8. (no) tener  razón (f) = to be right / wrong
9. tener vergüenza (f) = to be embarrassed

E.     Haber (Hay)—forma impersonal o el tiempo [Hay + noun}

1. Hay una fiesta el viernes.  (There is)
2. Hay veinte personas en la fiesta. (There are)
3. Hay nubes.  Hay neblina. (You can see clouds and fog, therefore you can use “hay,”   

Meaning Changes With Ser and Estar Phrases

There are some words that can be used with both ser and estar to form verb phrases, and these take on different meanings depending on the verb. Here are some examples of these types of phrases.

Ser Phrase	English	Estar Phrase	English
ser aburrido	to be boring	estar aburrido	to be bored
ser bueno	to be good	estar bueno	to be tasty/attractive
ser cansado	to be a tiring person	estar cansado	to be tired
ser grave	to be serious	estar grave	to be seriously ill
ser listo	to be clever	estar listo	to be ready
ser malo	to be bad	estar malo	to be ill
ser orgulloso	to be conceited or vain	estar orgulloso	to be proud
ser moreno	to be dark-skinned	estar moreno	to be tanned
ser pálido	to be pale-skinned	estar pálido	to be pale
ser pesado	to be heavy/to be boring	estar pesado	to be annoying
ser rico	to be rich	estar rico	to be tasty
ser seguro	to be safe	estar seguro	to be certain
ser verde	to be green	estar verde	to be unripe
ser viejo	to be old	estar viejo	to look old
ser vivo	to be sharp	estar vivo	to be alive

¿Lionel juega fútbol? - Sí, es bueno y es muy rico. Lionel plays soccer? - Yes, he's good and he's very rich.

¿Está bueno el café? - Sí, está muy rico. Is the coffee good? - Yes, it's quite tasty.

¡Qué cansado eres! Ya deja de hablar de ti mismo. How tiring you are! Stop talking about yourself already.

Si estás cansado, te puedes acostar en el sofá. If you're tired, you can lie down on the couch.

Common Mistakes with Ser and Estar

As you can probably imagine by this point, it’s very easy to make mistakes when using ser and estar. But never fear, budding language learner, it’s all part of the process to get ser and estar mixed up, so don’t worry when you do.To help you avoid falling flat on your face, we’ve compiled a list of the most common mistakes related to the “to be or to be” question.

1. Ser aburrido/a vs. Estar aburrido/a

A common mistake for those learning English is to say “I’m boring” when they actually mean “I’m bored.” Spanish learners can easily make a similar mistake, but in this case it’s not about learning the difference between two adjectives, but rather between two verbs.So what’s the difference between ser aburrido/a and estar aburrido/a? Well, seeing as you asked…

Soy aburrido/a means I’m boring. This means your entire essence is boring, and you are a boring person. It’s probably best to avoid saying this sentence altogether unless you either a) want to alienate yourself, or b) are in fact a boring person and want to tell the world about it.

You might want to say es aburrido/a (he/she/it is boring) when describing someone or something, but don’t blame us if someone is insulted by this declaration.
Estoy aburrido/a translates to “I’m bored” and is probably therefore more socially acceptable. This state of boredom is temporary, and we hope, more useful for everyday life.
2. Ser feliz vs. Estar feliz

We touched upon this one earlier. “Es feliz” means someone is a happy person, whereas “está feliz” means they are temporarily happy.
 Both are useful, but it’s important to know the difference between a perpetually happy person and someone who is just temporarily satisfied.
We touched upon this one earlier. “Es feliz” means someone is a happy person, whereas “está feliz” means they are temporarily happy. Both are useful, but it’s important to know the difference between a perpetually happy person and someone who is just temporarily satisfied.
3. Es muerto vs. Está muerto

Use the second one, always. For some reason the Spanish see being dead as a temporary state, and therefore always use estar to describe dead things or people. Está muerto, okay. It’s dead. Just go with it.
4. La fiesta es en mi casa vs. La fiesta está en mi casa

Going against our intuition once again, when describing planned events we use ser and not estar, even when describing location.

So “La fiesta es en mi casa” (The party’s at my house) is correct, even though we’re talking about the location of the party. The same applies to any pre-planned event such as meetings, weddings, parties or any other occasion where invitations have been sent out and RSVPing may be required.
5. Es bueno vs. Está bueno
This one can cause problems, for if you use “está bueno/a” in the wrong context, you might get some funny looks. “Está bueno/a” translates to “he or she is hot,” as in good-looking.
 This one is definitely useful in some contexts, but should probably be avoided in others.
If you want to say someone is smoking hot, use “está bueno/a.” But if you want to say someone or something is good in general, use “es bueno.” “Él es bueno” means “He’s a good person.”
So there you have it, you now know which circumstances require each type of “be.” You can now move on to more pressing questions. 

Fíjate en como estos adjetivos (borracho, listo…) cambian de significado dependiendo del verbo que empleemos:

                                           SER                    ESTAR

                                                       Borracho:    Alcohólico             Intoxicado
                                                       Listo:            Inteligente             Preparado
                                                       Preparado:  Educado                 Listo
                                                       Vivo:             Despierto               No muerto
                                                       Verde:           Color                     Inmaduro        

Es lo mismo ser malo que estar malo?

Let’s see the following example that can be used with both verbs:
It is correct to say: “The coffee is (“es”) bitter / The coffee is (“está”) sweet.

On one hand, “the coffee is bitter” is a statement. As we all know that coffee tastes bitter. In this case is used the verb “ser”. There is no need to taste the coffee in order to know that its flavour is bitter.
On the other hand, in the following sentence: “The coffee is sweet”, is used with the verb “estar”, because in order to be a sweet coffee someone first has added sugar or sweetener… Besides, we need to taste it to know if it is sweet or not, so the experience of tasting requires to use the verb “estar”. (Subjective).
Finally, we are going to see adjectives that will change its meaning depending of the verb used:

• “Bueno” / Friendly or Attractive:

– “Mi novio es muy bueno, me cuida mucho.” (It refers to personality)

– “Mi novio está muy bueno, tiene un cuerpo perfecto.”  (It refers to health / body / beauty)

• “Molesto” / Annoying or Upset:

– “Mi vecino es muy molesto (annoying), pone la música demasiado alta y no me deja dormir.”

– “Mi vecino está molesto (upset), no sé qué ha pasado que no quiere hablar conmigo.”

•  “Rico” / Rich – Tasty:

– “La familia de mi amigo es rica, todos tienen mucho dinero.” (High purchasing power)

– “La comida está muy rica, me encanta su sabor.” (Great taste)

• “Malo” / Bad – ill:

– “Tomar el sol sin protección solar es malo, debes usar crema.”

– “La comida está mala, no está en buen estado. (Bad conditions)”

– “Mi padre está malo, necesita estar en la cama durante tres días para curarse”. (illness)”

• “Listo” / Intelligent – cheeky – to be ready:

– “Estoy listo, podemos irnos cuando quieras.” (To be ready)

– “Mi hermano es muy listo, siempre saca buenas notas.” (Intelligent)

– “Mi vecino es un listo, siempre quiere que le lleve a todas partes con mi coche.” (Cheeky).

It seems difficult, but in reality can be quite easy. Perhaps, at the beginning, you will have to think about which verb has to be used, but once you use again and again it will be really easy!
Notice that these two sentences can have different meanings in English.
The apple is green.
(Meaning the apple is not ripe.)
The apple is green.
(Meaning the color of the apple is green.)
In the first case, our example speaks of the condition of the apple. The apple is green because it has not yet ripened. When the condition of the apple changes, that is, when it has ripened, it will no longer be green, it will be ripe.
In the second case, our example speaks of the essential characteristics of the apple. The apple is green in color. This particular apple remains green even after it has ripened.
In English, the verb “to be” can be used to tell how something is (the condition) and what something is (the essence).
How is the apple?
It is unripe.
What color is the apple?
It is green.
In Spanish, a different verb is used to express “to be” depending on whether the speaker intends to address a condition or an essential quality.
La manzana está verde.
The apple is green. (condition)
La manzana es verde.
The apple is green. (essence)
Note how the adjective “verde” actually changes meaning, depending upon whether it is used with ser or estar.
La manzana está verde.
(condition: verde = unripe)
La manzana es verde.
(essential characteristic: verde = color green)

Choose the correct translation.

1. He is bored.
   

   
   

   
   

   Él es aburrido.

   
   

   
   

   Él está aburrido.
2. He is boring.
   

   
   

   
   

   Él es aburrido.

   
   

   
   

   Él está aburrido.
3. She is happy. (temperament)
   

   
   

   
   

   Ella es alegre.

   
   

   
   

   Ella está alegre.
4. She is happy. (feeling happy)
   

   
   

   
   

   Ella es alegre.

   
   

   
   

   Ella está alegre.
5. They are tired.
   

   
   

   
   

   Ellos son cansados.

   
   

   
   

   Ellos están cansados.
6. They are tiresome.
   

   
   

   
   

   Ellos son cansados.

   
   

   
   

   Ellos están cansados.
7. John is sick.
   

   
   

   
   

   Juan es enfermo.

   
   

   
   

   Juan está enfermo.
8. John is sickly.
   

   
   

   
   

   Juan es enfermo.

   
   

   
   

   Juan está enfermo.
9. The boys are big.
   

   
   

   
   

   Los chicos son grandes.

   
   

   
   

   Los chicos están grandes.
10. The boys are big for their age.
    

    
    

    
    

    Los chicos son grandes.

    
    

    
    

    Los chicos están grandes.
11. Maria is amusing.
    

    
    

    
    

    María es divertida.

    
    

    
    

    María está divertida.
12. Maria is amused.
    

    
    

    
    

    María es divertida.

    
    

    
    

    María está divertida.
13. Arsenio is lively.
    

    
    

    
    

    Arsenio es vivo.

    
    

    
    

    Arsenio está vivo.
14. Arsenio is alive.
    

    
    

    
    

    Arsenio es vivo.

    
    

    
    

    Arsenio está vivo.
15. My sister is very quiet.
    

    
    

    
    

    Mi hermana es muy callada.

    
    

    
    

    Mi hermana está muy callada.
16. My sister is being very quiet.
    

    
    

    
    

    Mi hermana es muy callada.

    
    

    
    

    Mi hermana está muy callada.
17. The apple is unripe.
    

    
    

    
    

    La manzana es verde.

    
    

    
    

    La manzana está verde.
18. The apple is green (color).
    

    
    

    
    

    La manzana es verde.

    
    

    
    

    La manzana está verde.
19. The soup (here) is (always) delicious.
    

    
    

    
    

    La sopa es deliciosa.

    
    

    
    

    La sopa está deliciosa.
20. The soup is delicious (tonight).
    

    
    

    
    

    La sopa es deliciosa.

    
    

    
    

    La sopa está deliciosa.                

Decoding ser and estar: Permanent vs.Temporary Guide

[Also see other topics that can be challenging for English-speaking learners, here]

In Spanish, we use two important and common verbs, ser and estar, to talk about different aspects of things and people. These verbs usually have one translation into English (to be) and other languages. Let's break it down: 

ESTAR is used for incidental, so usually temporary, conditions - it is like a snapshot of a situation. It comes from Latin stare, which means to stand and is linked to English status, stance, standing, and state. If you know French, you may be surprised to know English stay likely comes from Old French ester (ester>estre>e(s)tre>être). It describes the condition or state in which something or someone happens to be in. 

SER, on the other hand, is used for essential qualities (not always permanent) and class membership. It expresses  fundamental characteristics and entity/identity of what something or someone really is. Very important: such identity & classification or essence is not always permanent, as in being a student or having a certain job title (soy estudiante, soy ingeniera), which change all the time, especially nowadays.

• ¿Cómo estás?- How are you (doing)? 
• Possible answers: Estoy muy bien./Estoy preocupada./Estoy contento./Estamos listos./Están un poco deprimidos.
• ¿Cómo eres?- What (how) are you like?
• Possible answers: Soy muy nervioso./Soy preocupona./Soy feliz./Somos listos./Soy un poco depresivo.

(Traditionally) Gray areas for ser/estar

Ser with events: In Spanish, we view events through the lens of event individuation and grounding. In simple terms, we treat the event as a unique and identifiable entity within a specific time frame or location. In other words, the event is seen as an inherent characteristic/defining aspect anchored to a particular time or place. For example: Hoy es mi cumpleaños y la fiesta es en la casa de mi mejor amiga. La conferencia no es en el centro de eventos del año pasado - es en la universidad. Recuerden que es el 5 de agosto a las 7 PM. 

Estar with muerto(s)/a(s) (and vivo): Vivo is a state that involves the transitional state or process of life and death. Whereas today "estamos vivos," tomorrow we don't know. Regardless, the process involves the use of estar to describe a potential change in state. Hoy estamos vivos, mañana podríamos estar muertos.

Estar or Ser with marital status - soltero(s), casada(s), viudo(s), divorciada(s): In Spanish speaker minds, the most common ways to view marital status are as:

1. Class membership: Treated as a fundamental role and defining characteristic of an individual within society, hence the speaker will be more likely to use ser for considering it as part of their identity.
2. A transitional state: It may be that the speaker views marital status as a temporary or changeable state, leading to the use of estar. 
3. It may also be - plain and simple - that they don't know, or at least are not aware enough to explain to a Spanish learner why the choice was made. This is most Spanish speakers who had never thought about these grammatical choices, or who never knew they represented such a difficulty to learners. The same usually applies to native (type language here) speakers regarding grammatical topics in their own languages.

Here are some examples: Soy felizmente casado desde hace 40 años. Está casada, pero sé que está considerando el divorcio por todo lo que está pasando últimamente. Si es casada, no me interesa entablar una relación amorosa. Estamos solteros y abiertos a una relación. Soy casado, pero ... 👀

How a speaker decides based on or influenced by societal norms, cultural attitudes, individual perspectives, or even personal preference and how these may be linked to psychological states of mind is beyond the scope of this explanation. However, my opinion is choices are also a window to the speaker's mind at the moment, which may not necessarily be easy to PARTICIPLES: ‘-ED’ vs. ‘-ING’

What is a participle? A participle is a word formed from a verb which can be used as an adjective.
PAST PARTICIPLES* examples:  bored  “I was bored at the movie theater.”
 surprised “I was surprised when I heard the news.”
PRESENT PARTICIPLES* examples:  boring “The movie was boring.”
 surprising “The news was very surprising.”
*Note: ‘-ed’ adjectives often describe people’s feelings: “I feel bored.” A boring movie, however, will make you feel bored.
 Choose the correct participle adjective form in each of the sentences below.
1. I don’t understand chess. The rules are very confused / confusing.
2. He was embarrassed / embarrassing when he arrived late for class.
3. There is a new movie playing at the theater. Are you interested / interesting?
4. My little brother makes too much noise. He is annoyed / annoying.
5. I like my new chair. It’s quite relaxed / relaxing.
6. Moving to a new home is hard work. It’s tired / tiring.
7. The sad news made me depressed / depressing.
8. Louise got a B+. She was satisfied / satisfying with her test results.
9. Our company isn’t making any money. It’s very worried / worrying.
10. Robert thinks that roller coasters are terrified / terrifying.
11. I think that insects are fascinated / fascinating. I love to study them!
12. When the TV program was cancelled, Kelly was disappointed / disappointing.

GRAMMAR DISCUSSION:
Student ‘A’
 Discuss the questions below with your partner.
1. What things kinds of TV programs are you interested in?
2. When was the last time you were embarrassed?
3. What makes you feel relaxed?
4. Do you feel tired after class? Why, or why not?
5. Were you satisfied with the test results of your last grammar test?
6. Talk about a time you were terrified.
7. Talk about a time you were worried.
8. How can you help someone who is depressed?
9. When was the last time you were bored? Why were you bored?
10. Talk about a time you were very surprised.
Student ‘B’
 Discuss the questions below with your partner.
1. What kinds of TV programs do you think are boring?
2. Talk about something you think is fascinating.
3. Talk about some surprising news you heard or read about.
4. Did you ever see something that was terrifying? What?
5. What kinds of activities do you think are exciting?
6. Talk about a time you did something that was embarrassing.
7. Do you ever do physical activities that are very tiring?
8. What school subjects do you think are interesting?
9. Do you agree that the news on TV nowadays is too depressing?
10. What kinds of activities do you do that are relaxing?

 Complete these eighteen sentences to score your knowledge of PARTICIPLE ADJECTIVES.

1. My neighbors are very … because they make too much noise!
a) annoyed. b) annoying.
2. John was … when he saw the dinosaur bones at the museum.
a) amazed. b) amazing
3. Mr. Smith really didn’t like that movie.He thought it was ….
a) bored. b) boring.
4. I’m …. Does our train leave at six-thirty or at seven-thirty?
a) confused. b) confusing.
5. Cloudy, rainy days always make me feel ….
a) depressed. b) depressing.
6. I’m never late for Spanish class because it's … when everyone looks at me.
a) embarrassed. b) embarrassing.
7. Of course, action movies are ….That’s why I like them.
a) excited. b) exciting.
8. I’m really afraid of large spiders!I think they are ….
a) frightened. b) frightening.
9. I have two tickets to the music concert. Are you …?
a) interested. b) interesting.
10. I was very … by the good news. We have a holiday next Monday!
a) pleased. b) pleasing.
11. Anne spent a very … day at home yesterday.
a) relaxed. b) relaxing.
12. … customers are very important to any successful business.
a) Satisfied. b) Satisfying.
13. Did you hear about the … news?There was a terrible accident.
a) shocked. b) shocking.
14. I was quite … when my little son jumped up and shouted, “Boo!”
a) surprised. b) surprising.
15. The chocolate cake on the table is really …. Should I eat it?
a) tempted. b) tempting.
16. I hate roller coasters. I think they are ….
a) terrified. b) terrifying.
17.After the eight-hour flight, we were all ….
a) tired. b) tiring.
18.I’m really … about my job. I think my new boss doesn’t like me.
a) worried. b) worrying.