In spanish how do you tell the difference?

Question

does any one know away to remember the difference between ser and estar?

and which on is perminante and which one isnt?

Answer 1

Ser is Permanent and Estar is Temporary

Answer 2

Ser is permanent and estar is non permanent

Conjugation:-

Ser:-

Soy, es, somos, son

Estar:-

Estoy, esté, estamos, estan.

Answer 3

"Ser" means "to be" in english.

First, you have to "forget" your english because for the two spanish verbs you (english speaking people) use only one (to be).

As an example i found on the net, in english you say:

"The apple is green" (condition-unripe) and "The apple is green" (essence-color). As you see in english you use one verb (to be) for both of them. It´s not that way in spanish.

In Spanish you say "La manzana está verde" meaning condition unripe and "La manzana es verde" meaning essence-color.

When to tell the difference? A different verb is used to express "to be" depending on whether the speaker intends to address a condition or an essential quality.

So, as i say at the beginning you have to forget a little about english and more of what you want to address.

To address condition, use "estar". "Estar" is an irregular verb. It does not follow the standard rules of conjugation for regular -ar verbs. Therefore, you must memorize it.

estar

estoy

estás

está

estamos

estáis

están

To address an essential quality, use "ser". "Ser" is also irregular and must be memorized.

ser

soy

eres

es

somos

sois

son

Link to "ser": http://buscon.rae.es/draeI/SrvltConsulta...

Link to "estar": http://buscon.rae.es/draeI/SrvltConsulta...

Answer 4

Ser--- to be (as in to be something)

Estar-- to be (as in to be somewhere)

Answer 5

Hi,

    Remember, the one that contains the "t," estar is temporary--"t" in both words.  

As to the difference,  I'm not really big on memorizing lists, but a member of a list can often be recognized without actually memorizing the list.  Anyway, here are some lists of usages in case you are intersted:

SER

1. The hour, day, and date

2. Place of origin

3.occupation

4. nationality

5. Religious or politocal affiliation

6. The material something is made of

7. Possession

8. Relationships of one person to another

9.certain impersonal expressions

10.  Where an event took place

11.  essential qualities

Estar:

1. Geographic or physical location, except an event

2.  State or condition

3.  Many idiomatic expressions

4. Progressive tenses.

FE

Answer 6

SER-

Profession

Origin

Time

Traits

ESTAR

Health

Emotion

Location

Present progressive