Ser vs estar, explained
Spanish has two verbs for “to be”. Ser says what something is: identity, origin, job, what it's like. Estar says how or where it is: states, feelings, location, results.
Most choices follow from that one idea. A short list of adjectives changes meaning with the verb (ser listo, “clever”; estar listo, “ready”), and that's where the later lessons go.
The essentials
- Ser for identity, origin, profession, time and dates, and lasting characteristics: soy Ana, es de Chile, es médica, son las tres, es alto.
- Estar for location and for states and feelings: está en Madrid, estoy cansado, la sopa está fría.
- Events “take place” with ser: la fiesta es en mi casa. People and things are located with estar: Juan está en mi casa.
- Some adjectives change meaning: ser aburrido (boring) / estar aburrido (bored), ser listo (clever) / estar listo (ready).
- Estar + gerund for what is happening now: estoy leyendo.
Every lesson on this topic
Each lesson has a full explanation, examples you can listen to, and exercises with answers.
A0 (the A0 course)
- Ser: soy, eres, es…: The verb 'to be' for name, origin, job and description
- Estar: how you are and where things are: estoy, estás, está…: feelings and states (estoy bien) and location (está en Madrid).
A1 (the A1 course)
- Ser or estar: the core contrast: Two verbs for 'to be': what something is, or how and where it is.
- Estar + gerund: what is happening now: Estoy hablando, está leyendo: actions in progress right now
A2 (the A2 course)
- Adjectives that change meaning with ser and estar: ser listo (clever) or estar listo (ready); ser aburrido (boring) or estar aburrido (bored).
B2 (the B2 course)
- Ser and estar: nuance, results and set phrases: Go beyond the basics: events, results of actions, estar de and estar para, impressions, dates and set phrases.
In the app, these lessons are taught one idea at a time with audio, practised with questions that explain the rule when you slip, and brought back for review on later days.
Other topics
- Por vs para, explained
- Preterite vs imperfect, explained
- The Spanish subjunctive, explained
- Gustar and verbs like it, explained
- Spanish reflexive verbs, explained
- Spanish object pronouns, explained
- Spanish commands (the imperative), explained
- Spanish future and conditional, explained
- The Spanish present tense and stem-changing verbs
- Spanish perfect tenses: he hablado, había hablado and more
- Tú vs usted (and vosotros vs ustedes), explained
- Spanish articles, gender and agreement, explained
- Spanish pronunciation and accent marks, explained