Gramàtica · Verbs · A1 · 12 min
To be: ser, estar, être, essere, stare, fi
Latin ESSE, plus a verb for sitting and a verb for standing.
De moment, les explicacions d’aquesta secció són en anglès; els exemples són en totes les llengües.
Latin had one verb 'to be', ESSE, and every sister still conjugates it in the present. But most also drew on two verbs of posture: SEDĒRE 'to sit' and STĀRE 'to stand' (Romanian drew on FIERĪ 'to become' instead). How much of 'sitting' and 'standing' got into 'being' is what makes this lesson.
| Latin | Spanish (ser) | French (être) | Italian (essere) | Portuguese (ser) | Romanian (fi) | Catalan (ser) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SUM | soy | je suis | sono | sou | sunt | sóc |
| ES | eres | tu es | sei | és | ești | ets |
| EST | es | il est | è | é | este, e | és |
| SUMUS | somos | nous sommes | siamo | somos | suntem | som |
| ESTIS | sois | vous êtes | siete | sois | sunteți | sou |
| SUNT | son | ils sont | sono | são | sunt | són |
Two verbs, one verb, one and a half
Spanish splits the job: ser for what something is (identity, profession, origin, time, where an event takes place) and estar for how or where it is (states, location of people and things, the progressive). Portuguese and Catalan have the same pair but draw the line elsewhere: Portuguese often gives the location of a place with ficar 'to stay' (Onde fica a estação? 'Where is the station?'), and standard Catalan gives location with ser (sóc a casa 'I'm at home'), keeping estar mainly for states (estic cansat). French has only être, plus aller for health, and Romanian only fi; its sta means 'to stand, stay, live'. Italian stands in between: essere does almost everything, while stare covers health (sto bene), staying put, the progressive (sto mangiando) and set phrases (stare zitto 'to keep quiet').
Sono medico.
Soy médico.
Je suis médecin.
Sou médico.
Sunt medic.
Sóc metge.
I'm a doctor.
Identity: ser. No sister uses an article before a bare profession.
Sono stanco.
Estoy cansado.
Je suis fatigué.
Estou cansado.
Sunt obosit.
Estic cansat.
I'm tired.
A state: Spanish, Portuguese and Catalan switch to estar; French, Italian and Romanian keep their one verb.
Sto bene, grazie.
Estoy bien, gracias.
Je vais bien, merci.
Estou bem, obrigado.
Sunt bine, mulțumesc.
Estic bé, gràcies.
I'm fine, thanks.
Health: estar, aller ('go'), stare; Romanian keeps plain fi. Portuguese obrigado agrees with the speaker: a woman says obrigada.
Madrid è al centro della Spagna.
Madrid está en el centro de España.
Madrid est au centre de l'Espagne.
Madri fica no centro da Espanha.
Madridul este în centrul Spaniei.
Madrid és al centre d'Espanya.
Madrid is in the middle of Spain.
Location of a place or thing: estar in Spanish, but plain être / essere / fi, Catalan ser, and Portuguese ficar 'stay'.
La festa è a casa mia.
La fiesta es en mi casa.
La fête est chez moi.
A festa é na minha casa.
Petrecerea e la mine.
La festa és a casa meva.
The party is at my place.
The classic Spanish exception, shared by Portuguese: where an event happens takes ser.
Sto mangiando.
Estoy comiendo.
Je suis en train de manger.
Estou comendo.
Mănânc.
Estic menjant.
I'm eating.
The progressive: estar / stare + gerund (European Portuguese: estou a comer); French uses être en train de, or just the present, and Romanian simply the present.
| Meaning | Spanish | French | Italian | Portuguese | Romanian | Catalan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| identity, profession | ser | être | essere | ser | fi | ser |
| temporary state | estar | être | essere | estar | fi | estar |
| health | estar (bien) | aller (bien) | stare (bene) | estar (bem) | fi (bine) | estar (bé) |
| where a thing is | estar | être | essere (trovarsi) | estar; ficar for places | fi (se afla) | ser (trobar-se) |
| where an event is | ser | être, avoir lieu | essere | ser | fi, avea loc | ser |
| '-ing' progressive | estar + -ndo | être en train de | stare + -ndo | estar + -ndo | (simple present) | estar + -nt |
| stay, remain | quedarse | rester | restare, stare | ficar | rămâne, sta | quedar-se |
When Spanish and Catalan change the verb, the others change the word
È molto noioso.
Es muy aburrido.
Il est très ennuyeux.
Ele é muito chato.
E foarte plictisitor.
És molt avorrit.
He's very boring.
Si annoia.
Está aburrido.
Il s'ennuie.
Ele está entediado.
Se plictisește.
Està avorrit.
He's bored.
ser + aburrido = a trait; estar + aburrido = a feeling, and Catalan avorrit works the same way. French, Italian, Portuguese and Romanian need a different word.