Ser Vs Estar to Be Or Not to Be (Am, Is, Are)
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