To Be & to Have

ser - to be
present		past		future
soy	I am	fuí	I was	seré	I will be
eres	you are	fuiste	you were	serás	you will be
es	he/she/it is	fué	he/she/it was	será	he/she/it will be
somos	we are	fuimos	we were	seremos	we will be
sois	you are	fuisteis	you were	seréis	you will be
son	they are	fueron	they were	serán	they will be
estar - to be
present		past		future
estoy	I am	estuve	I was	estaré	I will be
estás	you are	estuviste	you were	estarás	you will be
está	he/she/it is	estuvo	he/she/it was	estará	he/she/it will be
estamos	we are	estuvimos	we were	estaremos	we will be
estáis	you are	estuvisteis	you were	estaréis	you will be
están	they are	estuvieron	they were	estarán	they will be
tener - to have
present		past		future
tengo	I have	tuve	I had	tendré	I will have
tienes	you have	tuviste	you had	tendrás	you will have
tiene	he/she/it has	tuvo	he/she/it had	tendrá	he/she/it will have
tenemos	we have	tuvimos	we had	tendremos	we will have
tenéis	you have	tuvisteis	you had	tendréis	you will have
tienen	they have	tuvieron	they had	tendrán	they will have

Highlighted forms are only used in Spain.

Ser is used to identify or describe.  It tells what something is, its basic characteristics, or its origin.  Estar is used to tell the location of something or how someone feels.

Uses of Ser

Identify person/object Inherent characteristics or qualities Nationality/Occupation Telling time Express ownership Impersonal expressions Passive voice

El edificio es un templo. La casa es grande. Carlos es pobre. Es carpintero. Son las tres. Los libros son de Juan. Es necesario. El teléfono fue inventado por Bell.

The building is a temple. The house is large. Charles is poor. He is a carpenter. It's three o'clock. The books are John's. It is necessary. The telephone was invented by Bell.

Uses of Estar

Location/position Temporary condition/state State of health Form progressive tense

El libro está en la mesa. La ventana está abierta. Juan está enfermo. Miguel está estudiando.

The book is on the table. The window is open. John is sick. Michael is studying.

Sometimes changing the verb can completely change the meaning: ser aburrido means to be boring, while estar aburrido means to be bored. Others include: ser bueno - to be nice, estar bueno - to be in good health; ser callado - to be discrete, estar callado - to be silent; ser moreno - to have brown hair, estar moreno - to be tan.

Many common expressions using the verb "be" in English use the verb "tener" in Spanish (but not all):

to be afraid	tener miedo	to be in a hurry	tener prisa, estar de prisa
to be against	estar en contra	to be jealous	tener celos
to be at fault	tener la culpa	to be lucky	tener suerte
to be careful	tener cuidado	to be patient	tener paciencia
to be cold	tener frío	to be sleepy	tener sueño
to be curious	ser curioso/a	to be successful	tener éxito
to be happy	estar contento/a	to be thirsty	tener sed
to be hot	tener calor	to be tired	estar cansado/a
to be hungry	tener hambre	to be ___ years old	tener ___ años