Ser vs Estar To be or Not to be (am, is, are)
Verb Conjugations
Ser
Yo soy –I am / Nosotros somos –we areTú eres –you (informal) are / Vosotros sois –you (plural, informal) are
Él, ella, es –he/she is
Ud es –you (formal) are / Ellos ellas son –they are
UDS son –you (plural formal) are
Ser Describes:
1. __OCCUPATION (INCLUDING STUDENTS)_____
2. Place of _ORIGIN______,/Nationality
3. __POSSESSION_____
4. __MATERIAL______something is made of
5. __TIME____, dates, days of week
6. personal _TRAITS__ and physical characteristics
7. Relationship of one person to another
8. Where an __EVENT__ is taking place
9. __RELIGIOUS___/political affiliation
10. Certain impersonal expressions
11. Essential questions
Key Words: __DE (FROM / OF) _____
Examples:
• Yo _SOY__ alto y moreno. (_PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS___)
• Mi amigo _ES_____ un estudiante. (_PROFESSION__)
• Nosotros ____SOMOS__ de Georgia (___ORIGIN______)
Estar describes :
1. __EMOTION______
2. State or ___CONDITION______
3. Geographic/ physical __LOCATION______or position (permanent or temporary)
4. Many idiomatic expressions
5. Progressive tenses
v “how you’re ___FEELING_, where you __ARE_____, that is when you use estar”
Key words: __EN (IN), CON (WITH), **HOY (TODAY) ______
Hoy not always used with estar, watch out for dates, etc
Examples
• Yo _ESTOY______bien. (__EMOTION______)
• Samuel y Juan __ESTÁN______cansados. (____FEELING______)
• Teresa __ESTÁ______en California esta tarde. (______LOCATION______)
III. Why is it important to know the difference between the two?
• The choice of SER or ESTAR is important to the _MEANING______of the sentence.
o Lola es delgada -Lola is thin (she’s a __THIN PERSON______)
o Lola está delgada –Lola is thin (she has gotten thin, or she _LOOKS THIN______)
o Los profesores son aburridos –(the professors ___ARE BORING____)
o Los profesores están aburridos –(the professors ___ARE BORED______)
Emotions & Feelings (Emociones y Sentimientos)
Estoy… (or use another form of Estar if you’re not talking about yourself)
1. Feliz/ contento/a -HAPPY
2. Triste -SAD
3. Cansado/a -TIRED
4. Nervioso/a -NERVOUS
5. Deprimido/a -DEPRESSED
6. Enojado/a –ANGRY/MAD
7. Emocionado/a -EXCITED
8. **Aburrido -BORED (IF USED WITH ESTAR)
BORING (IF USED WITH SER)
9. Mareado –DIZZY
10. **Débil -WEAK
11. Satisfecho -SATISFIED
12. Enfermo -SICK
13. Saludable -HEALTHY
14. **Hiperactivo –HYPER
15. **Flojo/a / perezoso/a -LAZY
16. Confundido/a –CONFUSED
17. **Calmado/a / tranquilo/a –CALM
18. **Impaciente –-IMPATIENT
19. Preocupado/a –WORRIED / PREOCCUPIED
20. Entretenido/a -ENTERTAINED
21. **Serio/a -SERIOUS
22. Enamorado/a –IN LOVE
23. **Pensativo/a -THOUGHTFUL
24. Ocupado/a BUSY
25. Sorprendido/a -SURPRISED
Location words Review:
Al lado (de) –BESIDE / NEXT TO
Cerca (de) –CLOSE TO
Debajo (de) –UNDER / UNDERNEATH
Delante (de) –IN FRONT
En frente (de) -IN FRONT
Dentro (de) -INSIDE
Detrás (de) -BEHIND
Encima (de) –ON TOP
Lejos (de) –FAR FROM