MODULE 3 TWO FORMS OF VERB “TO BE”

OVERVIEW

This module deals with two Spanish verbs “ser” and “estar” which means, “to be”. It
discusses how to use these verbs in sentence constructions. The module tackles conjugations
of verbs particularly the Present tense. This helps students construct basic sentences in
Spanish.

OBJECTIVES: At the end of this module, you will be able to:

1. conjugate the verbs ser and estar

2. familiarize the distinct uses of ser and estar

3. construct Spanish sentences using the verbs.

VOCABULARY BUILDING

en vez de (instead of) otro/a (another) novecientos (nine hundred)

tambien (also/too) puedes pagar (you can pay) podemos perdonar
quincientos (five hundred) lo dudo (I doubt it) (we can forgive)
tampoco (neither) queda a la derecha lo veo (I see it)
setecientos (seven hundred) (it’s on the right) queada a la izquierda
todavía (still/yet) (it’s on the left)

COMMON PHRASES AND USEFUL EXPRESSIONS

¿Qué clase? What kind?

Estoy atrasado (a). I am late.
Estamos ocupado(a). We are busy
Lo que volando viene, volando se va. Easy come, easy go.

Subject Pronouns (I, you, he, she,it, we they)

Nota Bene

You may omit the subject pronouns in Spanish most of the time because the verb ending
in Spanish tells us who the subject is. For example, say “hablo” (I speak) you are indicating who
is doing the action because the “o” ending means “I”.

However, you can use the subject pronouns for emphasis or clarity. For example, “She
wants to go” can be stated as “Quiere ir”. But for clarity you could say “Ella quiere ir” as
opposed to “Él quiere ir” which means he wants to go.

yo I
tú you (fam)
él he
ella she
usted you (form)
nosotros we (m)
nosotras we (f)
vosotros you (pl fam m)
vosotras you (pl fam f)
ellos they (m)
ellas they (f)
ustedes you (form)
Here you change the noun into a pronoun:

Gullermo es filipino. Él es filipino.

Patricia es asiano Ella es asiano.
Patricia y yo somos estudiantes ____________________________________________
Juan y Patricia son amigos ____________________________________________
Patricia y Paula son amigas ____________________________________________

Answer the following questions in the affirmative sentence using the subject pronoun. Don't
forget the affirmative words.

1. ¿Juan es profesor?
______________________________________________________________

2. ¿Patricia y Mario son amigos?

______________________________________________________

3. ¿La señora Ortiz está casada?

______________________________________________________

4. ¿Maria y yo somos amigos?

________________________________________________________

5. ¿Es la mujer de Tayabas?

___________________________________________________________

Ser and Estar

The two Spanish verbs for “to be” are ser and estar. The literal translation for
both of these verbs may be the same but their uses are quite different. The verb ser identifies
who or what something is in a permanent sense (essential characteristics). The verb estar
indicates where the things are located and describes things in a more temporary sense.
(condition)
SER = to be

soy I am filipino/a (Filipino)

eres you are hombre (a man)

es he/she/it is español/a (Spanish)

somos we are mujer (a woman)

sois you are (pl) estudiante (a student)

son they are doctor/a (a doctor)

Ser is used to express:

The hour, day and date. Hoy es miércoles. (Today is Wednesday)

Place of origin. Soy de Lucban. (I am from Lucban.)
Occupation. Pedro es carpintero. (Peter is a carpenter.)
Nationality. Somos Filipinos. (We are Filipinos.)
Religious or political affiliation. Soy catolico. ( I am a Catholic.)
The material something is made of. La mesa es madera. (The table is made of wood.)
Possession. Los zapatos son de Janine.(The shoes are Janine’s.)
Relationship of one person to another. Jun es el esposo de Marta. (Jun is Martha’s husband)
Where an event is taking place. La pelicula es en el cine. (The movie is at the theater.)
Essential qualities. Leo es guapo. (Leo is handsome.)

ESTAR = to be

estoy I am bien (good/fine)

estás you are mal (bad/ill)

está he/she/it is así así (so so)

estamos we are en la clase (in the class)

estáis you are aquí (over there)

están they are trabajando (working)

allí (over there)

 ocupado/a (busy)

Estar is used to express:

Geographic or physical location. Estoy en la escuela. (I am in the school.)

State or condition. Estoy mal. (I am not good.)
Progressive tenses. Estoy comiendo pan y manzanas. (I am eating bread and apple.)

Construct the following sentence in Spanish using the correct form of ser and estar.

1. I am a man and I am busy.

____________________________________________________________________
_____________

2. I am a woman and I am working.

____________________________________________________________________
_____________

3. We are women and we are busy.

____________________________________________________________________
_____________

4. They are men and they are over there.

____________________________________________________________________
_____________

5. She is a student and she is in class.

____________________________________________________________________
_____________

Conjugating -ar, -er and -ir Verbs

Present Tense

We have used the “I” and “you” form” of some very common verbs to help you begin
building original sentences in Spanish quickly and easily. The next step is to learn the basic
conjugation, which will allow you to communicate in all subject voices.
 To conjugate a verb is to break it down from the infinitive into its basic forms. First the
ending of the verb must be removed to find the stem. Next certain endings are added to the
stem to make the different forms. Below is an example of how to conjugate regular verbs ending
in -ar using the verb hablar. Note that irregular verbs like ir and saber don’t follow the structure
and must be memorized.

Hablar (to talk/speak)

habl + o hablo (I talk)

as hablas (You talk)

a habla (He/she/it talks)

amos hablamos (We talk)

ais hablais (You talk)

an hablan (They talk)

Comer (to eat)

com+ o como (I eat)

es comes (You eat)

e come (He/she/it eats)

emos comemos (We eat)

eis comeis (You eat)

en comen (They eat)

Abrir (to open)

abr+ o abro (I open)

es abres (You open)

e abre (He, she, it opens)

imos abrimos (We open)

is abris (You open)

en abren (They open)

Source:
Langemeier, J. (2007). Spanish for dummies. Indiana, Idianapolis: Wiley Publishing, Inc.
Nissenberg, G. (2011). Must-know Spanish. New York: Mc Graw Hill International Edition.