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There are two very important verbs in the Spanish language. These verbs are used on a daily basis to communicate. Both ser and estar means to “BE” but they are not used interchangeably. When I was first learning Spanish my teacher taught me one of the easiest ways to distinguish between SER/ ESTAR is to remember ESTAR is ALWAYS used to talk about location and your physical state, any other usage SER must be used. She also taught me another tip; SER is used to describe people.
Here are some examples of ESTAR-LOCATION:
Ella está en la cocina.-She is in the kitchen
El está en la casa. – He is in the house
Nosotros estamos en el jardín.- We are in the garden
Pablo y Paco están en la escuela. Pablo and Paco are in school
María y Lupe están en España.- Maria and Lupe are in Spain
Examples of ESTAR- PHYSICAL STATE
Ella está enferma.- She is sick
El está nervioso- He is nervous
Nosotros estamos muy cansados- We are very tired
Pablo y Paco están enfermos- Pablo and Paco are sick
María está muy bien- María is feeling very well
ESTAR-
Yo estoy
Tu estás
El está
Ella está
Usted está
Nosotros estamos
Nosotras estamos
Ellos están
Ellas están
Ustedes están
SER- DESCRIBING PERMANENT CHARACTERISTICS
Yo soy
Tu eres
Él es
Ella es
Usted es
Nosotros somos
Nosotras somos
Ellos son
Ellas son
Ustedes son
Yo soy Americana-I am American
Ellos son Mexicanos- They are Mexicanos
Ella es flaca- She is skinny
Nosotros somos alumnos- we are students