Ser and Estar: An Easy Trick for Using These Verbs

Do you know how to say the verb "to be" in Spanish? The answer to that question has two options: ser and estar. In fact, mastering the verbs ser and estar is one of the first challenges you need to tackle when learning Spanish. In order to help you out with this challenge, we're going to share a very simple trick with you. Hopefully, it will help you remember when to use ser and estar.  

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Two words for learning the difference between ser and estar

The trick is very simple. All you need to remember are these two words: DOCTOR and PLACE. Use the former for the verb ser and the latter for the verb estar.

 

DOCTOR for ser

 

The word DOCTOR stands for the following: 

 

Description

Occupation

Characteristic

Time

Origin

Relationship.

 

Let's see some examples using the third person singular of ser in the present tense:

 

Description

 

"El coronavirus es un virus contagioso".

"The coronavirus is a contagious virus."

Caption 27, El coronavirus - Introducción y vocabulario

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Occupation

 

Tu papá es jefe de cartera, mi amor.

Your dad is a portfolio manager, my love.

Caption 52, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 3

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Characteristic

 

Él es un chico... Es muy simpático.

He's a guy... He's very nice.

Caption 52, Clase Aula Azul - Información con subjuntivo e indicativo

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Time

 

Diremos, "¿Qué hora es?"

We'll say, "What time is it?"

Caption 49, Español para principiantes - La hora

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Origin

 

Mi... mi madre es libanesa, mi padre de España.

My... my mother is Lebanese, my father [is] from Spain.

Caption 67, Eljuri - Hablamos Con La Artista Sobre Su Nuevo Álbum

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Relationship

 

Esa es mi tía Silvia.

That is my Aunt Silvia.

Caption 24, Español para principiantes - Demostrativos

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PLACE for estar

 

The word PLACE stands for the following:

 

Position

Location

Action

Condition

Emotion

 

Let's see some examples using the first person singular of estar in the present tense:

 

Position

 

Ahora, estoy en el centro.

Now, I'm in the center.

Caption 25, Raquel - Las direcciones

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Location

 

Ahora estoy en el Monumento Natural Dunas de Artola,

Now I'm at the Dunas of Artola [Artola Dunes] Natural Monument,

en la Playa de Cabopino.

on Cabopino Beach.

Captions 31-32, Viajando con Fermín - Dunas de Marbella

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Action

 

Silvia, ¿qué estás haciendo?

Silvia, what are you doing?

Estoy bebiendo un vaso de agua.

I'm drinking a glass of water.

Captions 25-26, El Aula Azul - Actividades diarias: En casa con Silvia

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Condition

 

Ay... ¿Y puedes llamar a mi trabajo y decir que estoy enferma?

Oh... And can you call my work and say I'm sick?

Caption 4, Extr@: Extra en español - Ep. 2: Sam va de compras

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Emotion

 

Estoy triste.

am sad.

Estoy triste.

I am sad.

Captions 9-10, El Aula Azul - Estados de ánimo

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Finally, we want to leave you with a little rhyme that will help you to choose the appropriate verb between ser and estar. This little rhyme, which is quite handy for the verb estar, goes like this:

 

For how you feel and where you are,

always use the verb ESTAR. 

 

In other words, keep in mind that when talking about emotions and location you should always use the verb estar.

 

That's it for today. We hope this little trick helps you to understand the difference between ser and estar, a little bit better. And don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions

Family Members in Spanish

Let's talk about family! Do you know how to say words like "father" or "cousin" in Spanish? Today, we will learn how to say the names of the most important family members in Spanish. In particular, we will see how to write and pronounce those names. Let's take a look.

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How do you say family in Spanish?

Familia is the Spanish word for family. It is important to say that this is a feminine collective noun. Collective nouns are words that we use for particular groups. However, these nouns are treated as singular words. Let's see how this works:

 

Mi familia es pequeña y cálida.

My family is small and warm.

Considerando que "familia" es un sustantivo colectivo femenino,

Considering that "familia" is a feminine collective noun,

conjugamos el verbo en tercera persona del singular

we conjugate the verb in third person singular

y utilizamos adjetivos femeninos, "pequeña" y "cálida",

and use feminine adjectives, "pequeña" [small] and "cálida" [warm],

para elaborar la concordancia de manera correcta.

to create agreement in the correct way.

Captions 16-20, Carlos explica - Sustantivos colectivos

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List of family members in Spanish

The following are the names of the most important family member in Spanish.

 

Madre (Mother)

 

Comes bastante verdura, tu madre que te quiere.

Eat enough vegetables, your mother who loves you.

Caption 38, Extr@: Extra en español - Ep. 1 - La llegada de Sam

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Very often, however, people refer to their mothers using the following terms:

 

Mamá, quería preguntarte algo.

Mom, I wanted to ask you something.

Caption 2, Yago - 10 Enfrentamientos - Part 7

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OR

 

¿Haciendo la tarea con mami? -Sí.

Doing your homework with Mommy? -Yes.

Caption 24, Yago - 11 Prisión - Part 5

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Padre (Father)

 

"A mi padre siempre le toca trabajar mucho todos los viernes".

"My father always has to work a lot every Friday."

Caption 53, Carlos explica - Vocabulario: El verbo “tocar”

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However, just like for the word "mother", there are some other terms people use when talking with or about their fathers:

 

Fue cuando me di cuenta no tenía ni idea de lo que hacía mi papá.

It was then that I realized I had no idea what my dad did.

Caption 30, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 3 - Part 3

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OR

 

Papi, cualquier hora es buena.

Daddy, any hour is good.

Caption 5, X6 1 - La banda

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Hijo (Son)

 

Quiero presentarles a mi hijo; Kevin, él es Felipe.

I want to introduce you to my son; Kevin, this is Felipe.

Caption 16, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 3 - Part 6

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Hija (Daughter)

 

Y muy feliz de tener a mi lado a mi hija.

And very happy to have my daughter by my side.

Caption 38, Yolimar Gimón - sobre el concurso Mrs. Venezuela

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Hermano (Brother)

 

Después aquí tengo a mi hermano, José.

Then here I have my brother, Jose.

Caption 11, Curso de español - Vamos a hablar de la familia

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Hermana (Sister)

 

...pero que estaba alejando a mi hermana de nosotros.

...but it was taking my sister away from us.

Caption 21, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 4

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Abuelo (Grandfather)

 

¡Abuelo, abuelo!

Grandpa, Grandpa!

Caption 9, Guillermina y Candelario - Un regalo de Estrellas

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Abuela (Grandmother)

 

Abuela, podemos hablar dos minutos por favor.

Grandmother, can we talk for two minutes, please.

Caption 4, Muñeca Brava - 18 - La Apuesta

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Nieto (Grandson)

 

Mi nieto no existe.

My grandson does not exist.

Caption 53, Muñeca Brava - 33 El partido

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Nieta (Granddaughter)

 

La nieta de María.

Maria's granddaughter.

Caption 30, Zoraida en Coro - El pintor Yepez

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Tío (Uncle)

 

Y su tío Aldo cree que está muerto, su tío Lucio confía en que esté vivo.

And his Uncle Aldo believes that he's dead, his Uncle Lucio has faith that he's alive.

Caption 22, Yago - 8 Descubrimiento - Part 3

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Tía (Aunt)

 

Esa es mi tía Silvia.

That is my Aunt Silvia.

Caption 24, Español para principiantes - Demostrativos

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Sobrino (Nephew)

 

¿Hace cuánto tiempo que dejó de ver a su sobrino?

How long ago did you stop seeing your nephew?

Caption 69, Yago - 8 Descubrimiento - Part 1

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Sobrina (Niece)

 

Sobrina. Muy bien.

Niece. Very good.

Caption 43, Curso de español - Vamos a hablar de la familia

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Primo (Male cousin)

 

Sí, me gusta mucho mi primo Pedro.

Yes, I like my cousin Pedro very much.

Caption 40, El Aula Azul - Mis Primos

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Prima (Female cousin)

 

Esta mañana mi prima se ha roto la pierna jugando al fútbol.

This morning my cousin has broken her leg playing soccer.

Caption 15, Lecciones con Carolina - Participios - Ejemplos de uso

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Finally, keep in mind that when using the plural forms of these nouns, you should use the male form when the group is made of both male and female members:

 

Two cousins (both male):  Dos primos

Two cousins (both female): Dos primas 

Two cousing (one male and one female): Dos primos

 

That's it for today. We invite you to take a piece of paper and design your family tree with the names of the family members in Spanish. And don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions.

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