Ser vs Estar

Question 1

ser “to be”

Answer 1

yo soy
tú eres
usted/él/ella es
Nosotros somos
Ustedes/ellos/ellas son

Question 2

estar “to be”

Answer 2

yo estoy
tú estás
usted/él/ella está
Nosotros estamos
Ustedes/ellos/ellas están

Question 3

both ser and estar are use as

Answer 3

the main verb in the sentence and as auxiliary verbs

Question 4

Which verb is used to describe more permanent or lasting situations?

Answer 4

ser

Question 5

Which verb is used to describe more temporary situations?

Answer 5

estar

Question 6

ser is used to indicate

Answer 6

• the identity of the subject
• someone’s occupation
• essential or inherent qualities not likely to change such as nationality, moral attributes or religion
• characteristics of physical appearance and personality
• relationships
• time
• place and date of an event
• origin, possession and the materials that objects are made of (used with preposition “de”)
• quantity and price
• in the passive voice construction (ser + participle + por)
• also used in impersonal expressions (Es urgente llamar a tu casa ahora!)

Question 7

estar is used to indicate

Answer 7

• location (permanent, temporary, short term, real or imaginary!)
• temporary mental conditions and moods (including depressed)
• temporary traits or qualities (estar emphasizes a short term condition or a basis for comparison with a previous state)
• a temporary situation (with the preposition “de”)
• also used with the -ando, -iendo forms for the present gerund form.

Question 8

(note)

Answer 8

in the following expressions, estar DOES need to be conjugated for the meaning of the sentence. It should not actually be in the infinitive form…

Question 9

estar a + [date]

Answer 9

“it is [date]”

Question 10

estar a punto de + [infinitive verb]

Answer 10

“to be just about to [verb]”

Question 11

estar para + [infinitive verb]

Answer 11

“to be about to [verb]”

Question 12

estar de acuerdo con …

Answer 12

“to agree with …”

Question 13

estar por + [noun]

Answer 13

“to be in favor of [noun]”

Question 14

estar conforme con…

Answer 14

“to be in agreement with…”

Question 15

estar de vacaciones

Answer 15

“to be on vacation”

Question 16

etsar de vuelta

Answer 16

“to be back”