The English Verb — To Be

The English Verb — To Be

In English, although we might not realize it when we speak, we express many different ideas with the verb to be. Are, for example, can mean:

are located (Granada and Barcelona are in Spain),

equal (Two and two are four),

or have the characteristic of being (Apples are red).

Spanish, however, uses two different verbs (estar and ser) for the ideas we express with to be. Estar is used to express location and condition; condition includes adjectives that describe a state of emotion or health (triste, sad; contento, glad; enfermo, sick; cansado, tired, etc.). Ser is used in most other cases, especially to indicate a fixed quality or inherent characteristic. Both verbs are irregular in the present indicative and preterit tense. These verbs cannot be interchanged without altering the meaning of the sentence.