A2 · Ser, estar and hay
ser or estar?
One adjective, two verbs, two meanings.
Most cases are settled by one question: am I saying what something is, or how it stands right now? The first is ser, the second estar. That question carries further than any list.
It gets interesting with the adjectives that take both — and then mean different things. Es aburrido is «he is boring», Está aburrido is «he is bored». Same word, two statements with nothing to do with each other.
The popular rule of thumb «ser is permanent, estar is temporary» is only half true and misleads in two common cases: a place is always estar, a city included, and being dead is estar, though nothing is more permanent.
Die Form
| nature, origin, job | ser |
| place — no exceptions | estar |
| how it feels right now | estar |
| a result you can see | estar |
| time, date, fixed price | ser |
| the continuous (gerund) | estar |
Die Regeln im Einzelnen
A place always takes estar, a city included.
Sevilla está en el sur.Seville is in the south.
An event takes ser, even with a place in the sentence.
La boda es en la iglesia.The wedding is in the church.
With some adjectives the choice changes the meaning.
Es listo. — Está listo.He is clever. — He is ready.
What is going on right now takes estar plus a gerund.
Estoy trabajando en otro proyecto.I am working on another project at the moment.
Woran man es erkennt
- aburrido
- listo
- bueno
- rico
- verde
- vivo
Beispielsätze
La sopa es buena, pero está fría.The soup is good, but it has gone cold.
Es una mujer muy alegre. Hoy está triste.She is a very cheerful woman. Today she is sad.
El plátano es verde por fuera y está verde todavía.The banana is green outside and still unripe.
¿Estás lista? — Sí, soy muy rápida.Are you ready? — Yes, I am very quick.
Die typisch deutsche Falle
Aufgepasst
The English translation is no help here, because both sentences come out the same. Say Está bueno of a person where you meant Es bueno and you have not said «he is good» but something a good deal more personal about how he looks. With people this one is worth some care.
What it is: ser. How it stands right now: estar.
Jetzt selbst
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