Hey, Spanish learners? Care for a little quiz? Is it Ser feliz or Estar feliz?
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Well, both answers are actually correct.
If your face looks like the one from the girl in the picture, don’t worry! For a native speaker, this nuance comes naturally, but it can be tricky to learn (even to teach). In Spanish, the verbs ser and estar (both “to be” in English) are fundamental and have different uses and meanings. Understanding the distinction between them is crucial to communicating effectively and expressing what you are thinking. But what makes them different and how are they used in different contexts?
Buckle up: we’re going to take you on a grammar ride through the verbs ser and estar, plus a Spanish exercise to check what you’ve learned!
Ser: Essence and Identity
Ser is used to describe the essence of someone or something. This verb is all about our identities, permanent characteristics, nationalities, and professions. When using ser, something is established as an inherent quality, stable over time.
👉 Examples:
- Identity: Yo soy una anciana (“I am an old woman”)
- Permanent characteristic: Tú eres inteligente (“You are intelligent”)
- Nationality: Él es de España (“He is from Spain”)
- Profesión: Somos doctores (“We are doctors”)
Ser is also used to express the time, date, and days of the week.
👉 Examples:
- Time: Son las tres (“It is 3 o’clock”)
- Day of the week: Hoy es lunes (“Today is Monday”)
- Date: La fiesta es el 15 de junio (“The party is on the 15th of June”)
Estar: Temporary States and Conditions
Now, let’s move on to the verb estar, shall we? Unlike ser, this verb is used to express temporary states, conditions, emotions, and locations. It describes how someone or something is or feels at a specific moment, but it might change over time.
👉 Examples:
- Emotion: Hoy yo estoy triste (“Today I am sad; maybe I won’t be tomorrow”)
- Temporary state: Tú estás cansada en este momento (“You are tired right now”)
- Location: Ellas están en mi casa ahora (“They are at my house right now”)
- Temporary condition: Este fin de semana, nosotros estamos ocupados (“We are busy this weekend”)
The verb estar is also used to indicate the progressive tenses in Spanish.
👉 Examples:
- Present continuous: Yo estoy estudiando (“I am studying”)
- Past continuous: Ella estaba comienzo arroz (“She was eating rice”)
Tricky adjectives: Es aburrido or Está aburrido?
In some cases, the choice between ser and estar depends on what you want to say. The intention of your message can completely change the meaning of your sentence. This usually happens when combining the verb “to be” with an adjective.
👉 Example:
- Ella está aburrida (“She is bored”) refers to a temporary feeling; being bored isn’t something that defines her as a person.
- Esta película es aburrida (“This movie is boring”) is a phrase we would use when talking about a permanent quality. The film is inherently boring.
Expert Mode: Ser bueno, Estar bueno or Estar bien?
Are you still afraid of ser and estar after all this information? Well, you should be: this is about to get harder! These two verbs are even more difficult to choose when you include the words bien and bueno/a (good or well in English). Here are some examples for each of the three options!
👉 Ser bueno/a (to be good):
- Good person: Juana es buena (“Juana is good”)
- Good quality: La comida fue buena (“The food was good”)
- To be good at something: Esteban es bueno tocando la guitarra (“Esteban is good at playing the guitar”)
👉 Estar bueno/a:
- Something fun or interesting: ¡El concierto estuvo muy bueno! (“The concert was very good!”)
- Attractive person: Manuel está bueno (“Manuel is attractive; an Argentinian expression”)
👉 Estar bien:
- Something that’s objectively correct: El bistec está bien hecho (“The stake is well made”)
- Something not bad, but not so good either: Este libro está bien… (“This book is okay…”)
- A phrase we use to accept something: ¡Está bien! (“Okay!”)
❌ Ser bien is not a correct sentence!
How come, when someone asks us ¿Cómo te fue en el viaje? we can answer: Me fue bien? Wasn’t it wrong to say that? The issue here is that fue doesn’t come from the verb ser, but from ir (“to go.”)
In English, we would translate that question as “How did it go?”, and the answer as “It went well.”
Fun fact: in Uruguay, there is a colloquial usage of ser bien to describe a person. For example: Juan es bien (this means “Juan is cool, he’s a good person.”)
Pop Quiz!
Now that you’ve seen all there is to know about ser and estar, it’s time to put your knowledge to the test! Let’s go back to the question at the beginning of this article: estar or ser feliz?
Here’s a short Spanish exercise. Below are two sentences, each one missing a verb. You must choose between ser and estar to fill in the blank.
Hint: one sentence uses an infinitive verb, and the other uses the verb in the present simple tense.
👉 ______ feliz es saber apreciar las pequeñas cosas” (“To be happy is to know how to appreciate the little things”)
👉 ¡______ muy feliz con el 10 que me saqué en mi examen de español! (“I am very happy with the 10 I got in my Spanish exam!”)
You can let us know your answer in the comment section!
Conclusion
After all this grammar, we can all agree on two things. First: Spanish is hard. Boy, it’s hard, especially for English speakers. Second: translating English to Spanish is even more challenging. That’s why a professional translator is a must. At Palabra, we offer specialized translation services in Spanish and English, as well as other languages. Our team of experts is here to help you every step of the way.
Get in touch with us to begin your translation journey!
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