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Ser vs Estar: Understanding Portuguese ‘To Be’ Verbs

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📖 Portuguese has two verbs that correspond to the verb "to be": Ser and Estar. However, they are not interchangeable and language learners often hesitate between using one or the other. So, what’s the difference between the Portuguese verbs ser and estar? How to know which one to use?  đŸ€“ Don’t worry! There are some essential differences between the uses of estar and ser that will give you clues. In this article, you’ll understand each one and find plenty of examples. You’ll need to get used to these differences if you want to become a fluent Portuguese speaker.
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Key Differences between Ser and Estar

As a general rule, ser expresses what something or someone is (being something or someone) while estar expresses where and how something or someone is in a moment in time (being somewhere or being in a state.)

The verb Ser

The verb ser is used when describing a person’s or object’s essential qualities or characteristics. It’s used for things inherent to the subject, or to describe permanent states:

  • đŸ§˜â€â™‚ïž NĂłs somos muito pacientes. (We are very patient.)
  • 🏠 A casa Ă© grande. (The house is big.)
  • 💚 Os meus olhos sĂŁo verdes. (My eyes are green.)

It is also used to indicate the origin or identity of something or someone:

  • đŸ—Œ Sou de Paris. (I’m from Paris)
  • đŸ€ Tu Ă©s portuguĂȘs. (You are Portuguese.)

The verb Estar

The verb estar is used for things considered non-inherent to the subject, like a transient mood or temporary states, sometimes due to external action (to be dirty or broken, for example). It is also used to indicate the temporary location of something or someone. 

  • 📍 Eu estou em Paris. (I am in Paris.)
  • 😊 Eu estou feliz. (I am happy [now].)
  • 😮 Ele estĂĄ cansado. (He is tired.)
  • đŸ§č A casa estĂĄ suja. (The house is dirty.)

How to know when to use one or the other?

There are some tricky situations in which by just changing the verb, you can change the whole meaning of the sentence. When in doubt think if the characteristic is temporary or inherent to the identity of the object.

Let’s look at the phrase “The weather is cold.”
If we use the verb ser it means it’s usually or always cold. We are talking about the climate. 

  • ❄ O tempo Ă© frio, no Alaska. (The weather is cold, in Alaska.)


If we use the verb estar we are referring to a temporary situation.

  • đŸ„¶ O tempo estĂĄ frio, hoje (Today, the weather is cold.)


Here are more examples:

  • đŸŸ© A maçã estĂĄ verde. (The apple is green. [It’s not ripe])
  • 🍏 A maçã Ă© verde. (The apple is green. [Green is its actual colour])
  • 🚗 O meu carro Ă© novo. (My car is new. [I just bought it])
  • 👌 O meu carro estĂĄ novo. (My car is new. [It’s in top condition, as good as new])
  • 💾 Aquela marca de roupa Ă© cara. (That clothing brand is expensive. [Their prices are always higher than average])
  • 📈 O combustĂ­vel estĂĄ caro. (The gas is expensive. [At the moment, these days])

Using the verb Ser

In general, we use ser in the following situations:

To identify things or people:

  • đŸ›ïž Aquele edifĂ­cio Ă© a CĂąmara Municipal. (That building is the City Hall.)

  • đŸ—Łïž Eu sou o Alex. (I’m Alex.)

  • đŸ‘« Tu Ă©s o namorado da Carmen, o Paulo? (Are you Carmen’s boyfriend, Paulo?)

To describe people or things

Descriptions are the essential qualities that define a person or thing and probably won’t change anytime soon. These descriptions can be names, physical descriptions, nationalities, occupations, civil status or even religions.

  • đŸ‘€ Eu sou portuguĂȘs. (I am Portuguese.)

  • 💬 VocĂȘs sĂŁo solteiros? (You are single?)

  • đŸ©ș Eu sou mĂ©dico. (I’m a doctor.)

  • 🧠 És inteligente. (You are smart.)

  • đŸ‘© Ela Ă© morena. (She is a brunette.)

  • 👭 NĂłs somos jovens. (We are young.)

  • đŸŒ¶ïž Os pimentos sĂŁo verdes, vermelhos ou amarelos. (Peppers are green, red or yellow.)

You might be thinking that your profession or civil status is not permanent. You might change careers or get divorced, for example. Although that is true, in Portuguese it is appropriate to consider the profession, civil status and religion as essential traits even though any of them could eventually change in the future.

 

To indicate where a place is or where an event takes place

  • 🌍 Lisboa Ă© em Portugal. (Lisbon is in Portugal.)

  • đŸŽ¶ O concerto Ă© na Casa da MĂșsica. (The concert is at Casa da MĂșsica.)

To indicate the origin of something or someone

  • 🧳 Ele Ă© de Chicago. (He is from Chicago.)

  • đŸïž NĂłs somos de Barcelona. (We are from Barcelona.)


To indicate the material of something

  • đŸ–Šïž A caneta Ă© de metal. (The pen is made of metal.)

  • đŸȘ” Estas cadeiras sĂŁo de madeira. (These chairs are made of wood.)


To indicate possession

  • 📚 De quem sĂŁo estes livros. (Whose books are these?)

  • 🚘 É o meu carro. (It’s my car.)


To tell the time

  • đŸ•°ïž SĂŁo seis e meia. (It is six-thirty.)

  • ⏰ SĂŁo nove e um quarto. (It is nine fifteen.)

  • 🕛 É meia noite. (It is midnight.)

  • ☀ É uma da tarde. (It is one in the afternoon.)


For prices and quantities

  • 💾 Quanto Ă©? (How much is it?)

  • đŸ’¶ SĂŁo 30 euros. (It is 30 euros.)


For impersonal expressions

  • 🚑 É necessĂĄrio chamar um mĂ©dico. (It is necessary to call a doctor.)

  • đŸƒâ€â™€ïž É hora de ir embora. (It is time to leave.)

Conjugation of the verb Ser

Ser is an irregular verb, which means that it doesn’t follow the regular pattern for verb endings. But you’ll see the forms of ser so often that you’ll get lots of practice with them!

conjugation of the verb "ser"

Using the verb Estar

We typically use the verb estar when describing the temporary characteristics of an object or person, or to express how someone feels at a particular moment in time. There are certain rules below that can clear up some of the confusion around using the verb estar.

In general, we use the verb estar in the following situations:

To greet someone

  • đŸ‘‹đŸ» Como estĂĄ? (How are you?)

  • 🙏 Estou bem, obrigado. (I’m fine, thank you.)


To indicate a temporary situation

The situation can be physical, mental, imaginary or a state of mind

  • đŸ€’ Estou doente. (I am sick.)

  • 👎 VocĂȘ estĂĄ triste. (You are sad.)

  • 👌 Gosto de ver que estĂĄs bem. (I’m pleased to see you are all right.)


To indicate someone’s location or the location of a movable item

  • 🌍 Ele estĂĄ nos Açores. (He is in the Azores.)

  • 📖 O livro estĂĄ Ă  direita do candeeiro. (The book is to the right of the lamp.)

  • 👓 Os Ăłculos estĂŁo em cima da mesa. (The glasses are on the table.)


To talk about the weather

  • đŸŒĄïž Hoje estĂĄ calor! (Today is hot!)

  • ⛄ EstĂĄ muito frio lĂĄ fora! (It is very cold outside!)


To talk about a characteristic that you need to try to know of

  • đŸ„Ł A sopa estĂĄ salgada. (The soup is salty.)

  • ☕ O cafĂ© estĂĄ frio! (The coffee is cold!)

  • đŸ„› O leite nĂŁo estĂĄ bom, estĂĄ azedo. (The milk isn’t good, it is sour.)

The verb Estar in progressive tenses

It’s important to note that the verb estar is also used to form progressive tenses, such as the present continuous or the past continuous, which are used to talk about actions in progress.

  • đŸœïž Ele estĂĄ a comer. (He is eating.)
  • 🏡 Eu estou a chegar a casa. (I am arriving home.)
  • đŸŽČ Eles estavam a jogar pĂłquer. (They were playing poker.)
  • đŸ’€ NĂłs estĂĄvamos a dormir. (We were sleeping.)

Conjugation of the verb Estar

Estar is also an irregular verb that you’ll need to get lots of practice with! 

conjugation of the verb "estar"

Common mistakes made with "Ser" and "Estar"

Let’s see some of the most common and sometimes even funny mistakes that can happen if you don’t completely master the uses of estar and ser:

To be boring vs To be bored

Here is one situation where it’s very important that you use the correct verb.

If you are bored, you say: Estou aborrecido(a). 

If, instead, you use ser, it means that you are boring: Sou aborrecido(a).

Ser moreno(a) vs Estar moreno(a)

In Portuguese, a brunette is said to be moreno(a) and in that case, the ver ser is used.

  • đŸ‘© A Carla Ă© morena. (Carla is a brunette.)

If the person is tanned, we use the verb estar, as it is a temporary condition.

  • đŸ–ïž O LuĂ­s estĂĄ moreno. (Luis is tanned.)

Running Late

If you are running late make sure to use estar: 

  • ⏰ Desculpa, estou atrasado(a). (Sorry, I’m late.) 

If you use ser, people may laugh at you: 

  • 😬 Desculpa, sou atrasado(a). (Sorry, I’m retarded.)

Being dead or alive

Always use estar to describe dead things or people. For some reason, being dead or alive in Portuguese works as a temporary state: 

  • đŸ–€ O pĂĄssaro estĂĄ morto. (The bird is dead.)
  • 👮 O meu bisavĂŽ estĂĄ vivo. Tem 97 anos. (My great-granddad is alive. He’s 97 years old.)

Ser morto(a) has no actual meaning, it’s just grammatically incorrect. However, ser vivo can mean to be lively/animated or sharp.

O concerto Ă© vs. O concerto estĂĄ

When describing where a planned event takes place we use ser and not estar, even though we’re talking about the location.

  • đŸŽŒ O concerto Ă© na Casa da MĂșsica. (The concert is at Casa da MĂșsica.)

Keep in mind that when describing how the concert itself is going, we will use estar: 

  • 🎾 O concerto estĂĄ muito divertido. (The concert is very fun).

Ser doente vs. Estar doente

Generally, we use estar to talk about a temporary health state or condition.

  • đŸ˜· O Carlos estĂĄ doente. EstĂĄ com sarampo. (Carlos is sick. He has the measles.)

However, if referring to a chronic disease or condition that is permanent we use ser.

  • đŸ‘©â€âš•ïž A Ana Ă© hipocondrĂ­aca. (Ana is hypochondriac.)
  • 🔬 O Carlos Ă© diabĂ©tico. (Carlos is diabetic.)

🎓 That was a lot to learn, and thanks for reading it all!

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