VERBO SER – Verb «to be»

Hello and welcome!

Today we’re going to learn about one of the most important and useful verbs: the verb «ser», which can be compared to the verb «to be» in English.

Now, one cannot say that «to be» and «ser» are exactly the same, because they’re not. There are different situations in which you could use the verb «to be» in English but you would have to use a different one in Spanish. You can use the verb «to be» to describe something, to express how you’re feeling, to say where you are… It has many different uses, but keep in mind that «ser» doesn’t have the exact same ones.

First, we will learn how to conjugate it and then we will learn how and when to use it.

How to conjugate «ser»?

To better understand this post and to be able to learn about Spanish verbs properly, make sure you learn about personal pronouns first! I made a post about this topic that can help you.

• Yo soy 🠖 I am
• Tú eres 🠖 You are
• Él / Ella es 🠖 He / She is
• Nosotros somos 🠖 We are
• Vosotros sois 🠖 You are
• Ellos son 🠖 They are

For each person there is a different form of the verb and you need to remember it! I promise, not all Spanish verbs are so different, most of them have similar forms for each person and there’s a rule that can help you, but we will learn about that in the future.

When do we use «ser»?

Here you have a few situations in which you can use «ser». Keep in mind that there are more, and there are also a few exceptions, but I will make sure to post a lot of information about it so you will be learning slowly and steady.

• To say the time: It’s 9 o’clock 🠖 Son las 9 en punto // It’s late 🠖 Es tarde.
• To introduce someone: I’m Jack 🠖 Yo soy Jack // She is Jane 🠖 Ella es Jane.
• To say something’s origin: I’m Spanish 🠖 Yo soy española // We are Japanese 🠖 Nosotros somos japoneses.
• *To describe someone or something: This is big 🠖 Esto es grande // That car is red 🠖 Ese coche es rojo.
• For professions: I’m a doctor 🠖 Yo soy médico // They are dancers 🠖 Ellos son bailarines.

*Features vs. states

There’s a difference between a feature, something permanent that cannot (or it’s very difficult) to change.

• I’m tall 🠖 Soy alto.

Being tall or short is not something you can change, it’s something fixed, so we use «ser».

• I’m angry 🠖 Estoy enfadado.

Being angry is a state. It’s not something permanent and it will eventually change. Even if someone has a tendency to get angry easily, it’s temporary. We use a different verb to express that. It can seem complicated at first, but it’s only a matter of time and practice. You will get the hang of it.

A few sentences:

• Yo soy Aina.
  ↳ I’m Aina.
• Tú eres profesor.
  ↳ You are a teacher.
• Ella es inteligente.
  ↳ She’s intelligent.
• Nosotros somos italianos.
  ↳ We’re Italian.
• Vosotros sois simpáticos.
  ↳ You’re nice.
• Ellos son estudiantes.
  ↳ They’re students.

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We’ll leave it here for today! I hope this post was useful.
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Thank you for you attention and see you next time!

¡Hasta pronto!