Lesson 33

Words That Belong with Ser or Estar

Language Transfer Complete Spanish is by Mihalis Eleftheriou. Listen to the original audio first; use these notes for revision.

More ser/estar meaning changes:

Listo: Estoy listo = I'm ready (state). Soy listo = I'm smart (characteristic).

Bueno: Es bueno = He's a good person (characteristic). Está bueno = He's attractive / in good form (state). Be careful with this one!

Tan = so (as in "I'm so tired"). Muy = very.

Feliz = happy. This word comes from felicidad (happiness, think "felicity"). Feliz navidad = Merry Christmas. Being happy can be either a state or a characteristic — estoy feliz (right now) or soy feliz / soy una persona feliz (generally).

¿Cómo es? = What is he/she like? (asking about characteristics). ¿Cómo está? = How is he/she doing? (asking about state).

Sentences practiced

Spanish	English
Estoy listo.	I'm ready. (masculine speaker)
Estoy lista.	I'm ready. (feminine speaker)
Estamos listos.	We're ready. (masculine/mixed)
Estamos listas.	We're ready. (feminine)
Nosotras estamos listas.	We (female group) are ready.
Es listo.	He's smart.
Es lista.	She's smart.
Eres muy lista.	You are very smart.
Estoy tan cansado.	I'm so tired. (masculine speaker)
Estoy tan cansada.	I'm so tired. (feminine speaker)
Estoy tan aburrida.	I'm so bored.
Él está tan aburrido.	He is so bored.
Es tan aburrido.	It is so boring.
Son buenos.	They are good (people).
Es bueno.	He is good. (person)
Está bueno.	He's attractive. / It tastes good.
Quiero saber cómo es.	I want to know what he/she is like.
¿Cómo está?	How is he/she doing?
Feliz navidad.	Merry Christmas.
Felicidad.	Happiness.
Estoy feliz.	I'm happy. (right now)
Soy feliz.	I'm happy.
Soy una persona feliz.	I'm a happy person. (generally)