Ser is used to signify equivalence or identity between two elements:
Mi esposa es doctora. - My wife is a doctor.
Ser is used to indicate an inherent characteristic or quality:
El niño es guapo. - The boy is handsome.
Ser is used to indicate origin:
Yo soy de Colombia. - I'm from Colombia.
Ser is used to express ownership or possession:
Ese carro, el cual está muy sucio, es de Enrique. - That car, that is very dirty, is Enrique's.
Ser is used to express the time of day:
Son las doce. - It's twelve o'clock.
Ser is used to talk about dates
Es el primero de enero. - It is the first of January.
Estar is used to signify the location of an object:
El perro está al lado del gato. - The dog is next to the cat.
Estar is used to express an action in progress (progressive tense):
Estoy escribiendo. - I am writing.
Estar + past participle is used to indicate a resultant condition:
Estoy cansado. - I am tired.
Estar is used to express a changeable state or condition:
María está enferma. - María is sick.
USES OF ESTAR
To express location or position:
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El libro está en la mesa.
The book is on the table.
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Juárez está en México.
Juarez is in Mexico.
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¿Dónde está Benito?
Where is Benito?
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Mi padre está en el campo.
My father is in the country.
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San Francisco está en California.
San Francisco is in California.
Note: If the verb ‘is’ expresses the idea of ‘takes place,’ then ser must be used.
Note: As an exception to the rule, Estar is always used with muerto.
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Mi abuelo está muerto.
My grandfather is dead.
The verb estar, followed by a past participle, is used to show the result of a previous action. The past participle in this construction also is used as an adjective, and therefore agrees with the subject in gender and number.
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El libro está bien escrito.
The book is well written.
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La mujer está sentada.
The woman is seated.
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La puerta está cerrada.
The door is closed.
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El paquete fue entregado ayer.
The package was delivered yesterday.
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Los dos paquetes fueron entregados ayer.
The two packages were delivered yesterday.
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La carta fue escrita por Juan.
The letter was written by John.
To express the progressive form of the present.
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¿Qué estás haciendo? Estoy abriendo este paquete.
What are you doing? I'm opening this package.
With the present participle to stress an action in progress.
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Ahora está hablando.
He is talking now.
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Estaba gritando entonces.
He was shouting then.
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Pasamos muchas horas fumando.
We spend many hours smoking.
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Leyendo tal libro, se aprende mucho.
(By) reading such a book, one learns a great deal.
The imperfect tense of the verb estar is used before the present participle of a verb to show progressive action in past time.
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Ella estaba trabajando allí. (Ella trabajaba allí.)
She was working there.
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Juan estaba viviendo solo. (Juan vivía solo.)
Juan was living alone.
USES OF SER
Generally ser expresses a characteristic that is natural or inherent and essentially lasting rather than temporary, such as: age, character, financial status, appearance, origin, ownership, material of which a thing is made, occupation, nationality. Ser is also used with time expressions and impersonal expressions. It is always used before a predicate noun or pronoun.
Ser is used:
With an adjective to express a characteristic of something.
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La ciudad es grande.
The city is large.
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Ella es simpática.
She is nice.
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Somos pobres (jóvenes).
We are poor (young).
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La casa es pequeña.
The house is small.
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El señor Moreno es joven.
Mr. Moreno is young.
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El niño es bueno.
The child is good.
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El perro es leal.
The dog is loyal.
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Aconcagua es la montaña más alta de América del Sur.
Aconcagua is the highest mountain in South America.
With the preposition de to express ownership, national origin, or material (from which something is made); and with the preposition para to indicate for whom or what a thing is intended.
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Son de Carolina.
They are Caroline's.
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Soy de Buenos Aires.
I am from Buenos Aires.
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Juan es de Venezuela.
John is from Venezuela.
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El reloj es de oro.
The watch is (of) gold.
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La mesa es de madera.
The table is made of wood.
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Son para aquellos hombres.
They are for those men.
With a predicate noun (or pronoun), which comes after the verb and explains who or what the subject is.
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Él es profesor de matemáticas.
He is a math professor.
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Madrid es la capital de España.
Madrid is the capital of Spain.
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Soy yo.
It is I.
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Juan es médico.
John is a doctor.
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Es una ciudad grande.
It is a large city.
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Ella y yo somos argentinas.
She and I are Argentines.
In impersonal expressions (it + verb + adjective)
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Es fácil comprender el español.
It is easy to understand Spanish.
The third person of the verb ser is used to indicate the time of day, except in the expression ¿Qué hora tienes? (What time do you have? or What time do you make it?). Time in the past is rendered by the imperfect of ser.
Note: The cardinal number indicating the hour is always preceded by la or las.
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Es la una y cinco.
It is five minutes after one.
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Son las seis menos cuarto.
It is a quarter to six.
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Eran las cuatro de la tarde.
It was four in the afternoon.
SER AND ESTAR USED WITH THE SAME ADJECTIVES
A number of common adjectives vary considerably in meaning when used with ser or estar:
Characteristic Condition (emotional, physical)
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María es mala. - characteristic
Mary is bad (a bad person).
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María está mala. - condition
Mary is not well (she’s ill).
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Juan es aburrido. - characteristic
John is boring.
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Juan está aburrido. - condition
John is bored.
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Rafael es listo. - characteristic
Rafael is clever.
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Rafael está listo. - condition
Rafael is ready.
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Mi hija es muy alta; mide casi seis pies.
My daughter is very tall. She’s nearly six feet.
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Mira, pero la niña está altísima.
Wow, look how tall the little girl is now/Look how tall she’s grown.
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Ramón es muy guapo; podría ser modelo.
Ramon is very handsome; he could be a model.
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Oye, José, luces bien. Estás muy guapo esta noche.
Hey, José, you look good. You’re very handsome tonight.
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La muchacha es pálida.
The girl is pale (has pale skin).
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La muchacha está pálida.
The girl is pale (looks pale today).
When speaking of colors, it is more usual to use ser but when color refers to a transitory condition rather than a constant quality, then estar is appropriate:
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Estas manzanas son verdes.
These apples are green (they are of a green variety, — e.g. Granny Smiths).
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Estas manzanas están verdes.
These apples are green/unripe/not ready to eat.<
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Mi carro es rojo. Me gusta el color.
My car is red. I like the color.
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Ten cuidado, la luz está roja.
Watch out, the light is (on) red.
Vocabulary Flashcards