Ser vs. Estar: Round 1

Ser vs. Estar: Round 1 

One of the most common problems Spanish students face when learning the language is differentiating two major verbs: ser and estar.  They both mean "to be," but are obviously used very differently.  We'll be identifying their main differences - both the obvious and subtle ones - over the next three blogs.  

This blog entry explains the difference between the two verbs in regards to how they affect adjectives.  For help conjugating them (estoy, estás, está...), you can check out the chart at http://www.lingolex.com/ser/ser-estar-form.htm. 

Today, we'll (1) start with the simple rules concerning the main difference between the two verbs, (2) look at some example sentences, and (3) finish with a  look at a small list of adjectives that actually change meaning completely, depending on whether constructed with ser or estar.  

The Main Difference

When we use the verb "to be," something can be a condition (that is oftentimes temporary) - such as being sick, being tired and being quiet.  In contrast, we could use "to be" in order to refer to something that is an essential and permanent quality - being a quiet person, being mentally sick, being beautiful (not just for the moment, but in general).  This is the main difference between ser and estar.  

estar = [current] condition

ser = permanent quality

So, a simple way to see this difference is the use the same adjective and notice how the meaning changes...

adjective	estar	translation	ser	translation
enfermo/a	Juán está enfermo hoy.	Juan is sick today.	Juan es enfermo.	Juan is (mentally) sick.
verde	La fruta está verde.	The fruit is not yet ripe.	La fruta es verde.	The fruit is the color green (such as a kiwi-fruit).
callado/a	Eres muy callado hoy.	You’re being very quiet today.	Ella es una persona muy callada.	She is a very quiet person.
desconocido/a	Con estos lentes, estás desconocido.	You’re unrecognizable with those glasses.	Es desconocido.	He is unknown.  (a stranger)
hermoso/a	Estás hermosa.	You look beautiful.	Eres hermosa.	You are beautiful.

So, try to translate the following sentences into Spanish using either ser or estar

• My friend is very quiet.
• You are being stupid.
• You are stupid.
• She is pretty.
• With those glasses, she looks pretty. 

Español	English
Mi maestro es muy aburrido.	My teacher is so boring.
Estoy aburrido.  No hay nada que hacer.	I’m bored.  There’s nothing to do.
Está despierto	He is awake
Ella es muy despierta.	She is a very alert person.
Estoy enojado.	I am angry.
Soy enojado.	I am an angry person.

  

Changing Meaning Completely

A limited number of adjectives change meaning drastically when the verb changes from ser to estar or vice-versa.  Here's the list:

ser	adjective	estar
to be clever	vivo	to be alive
to be clever/smart	listo	to be ready
to be rich	rico	to taste good
to be mean	malo	to be sick
to be interested	interesado/a	to be a mercenary

So, that's a basic idea of the main difference between the two verbs and how they can change the meaning of adjectives.  Unfortunately, the battle is not yet over and there are other key ideas such as motion, location, emotions and events that alter which verb to choose.  These ideas will continue to be covered in next week's blog - Ser vs. Estar: Round 2....