English-Spanish Helpful Handouts Page 1 of 9 Ser is used when Be is followed by a noun. Es un día bonito. (It s a beautiful day.) Ser is used to describe what is permanent, inherent, or characteristic. El hielo es frío. (Ice is cold.) Ser is used to tell the hour, day, and date. Es el lunes, el veintinueve de julio. (It s July 29th.) Ser is used to talk about place of origin. Soy de Chile. (I m from Chile.).
English-Spanish Helpful Handouts Page 2 of 9 Ser is used to express possession. El coche es mío. (The car is mine.) Ser is used with impersonal expressions. Es posible. (It s possible.) Ser is used to describe size and physical characteristics. It tells what something is made of. Esta casa es de ladrillos. (This house is brick.) Ser is used to talk about religious and political affiliation. Son católicas. (They re catholic.)
English-Spanish Helpful Handouts Page 3 of 9 Ser is used to talk about nationality. Ella es china. (She s Chinese.) Ser is used to describe relationships. Ellos son mis padres. (They are my parents.) Ser is used to describe personality characteristics. Ustedes son cómicos. (You re funny.) Ser is used to talk about profession. Es soldado. (He s a soldier.)
English-Spanish Helpful Handouts Page 4 of 9 Ser is used to define or identify people, places, and things. Éstas son flores. (These are flowers.) Ser is used to describe the natural color of something. La leche es blanca. (Milk is white.) Ser is used to say where an event is taking place. La fiesta es en la casa de Paula. (The party is at Paula s house.) Ser is used in passive voice constructions to describe an action by a doer, that is an agent. The agent is introduced by por. Los papeles son arreglados por el secretario cada mañana. (The papers are arranged by the secretary every morning.)
English-Spanish Helpful Handouts Page 5 of 9 Many adjectives can be used with either ser or estar. The meaning changes depending on the verb you choose. Ser Estar abierto frank open aburrido boring bored alegre lighthearted happy alto tall, high in a high position atento courteous attentive bajo short, low in a low position borracho drunkard drunk bueno good (character) well (health) callado taciturn silent cansado tiresome tired cerrado narrow-minded closed cierto sure true consciente aware conscious (awake) despierto alert, sharp awake enfermo invalid unwell interesado self-seeking interested limpio well-groomed clean listo clever ready loco silly (character) frantic mal bad (character) sick (health) molesto annoying bothered nuevo newly-made unused muerto killed in action dead orgulloso proud (derogatory) proud of someone/something preparado ready, prepared learned rico rich delicious seguro safe, reliable assured, confident simpático likeable (character) libkable a the present time triste dull sad verde green not ripe violento violent embarrassed vivo lively alive
English-Spanish Helpful Handouts Page 6 of 9 Matching. Instructions: Match each sentence with the reason that it uses ser. (The answers are on page 9.) a. Los formularios son llenados por los empleados. c Inherent characteristic b. La falda es de lana. Hour, date, or day c. El hierro es duro. Origin d. Es Español. Possesion e. Son las cinco y media. Impersonal Expression f. El cristal es mío. Describes what something is made of g. De dónde eres? Religious or political affiliation h Es verdad. Nationality i Es médico. Relationship j. Ella es amable. Personality characteristic. k. Madrid es la capital de España. Profession l. El baile es en la universidad. Definition m. Las manzanas son rojas. Natural color n. Esos señores son protestantes. Location of an event o. Vosotros sois mis hermanos. Passive voice
English-Spanish Helpful Handouts Page 7 of 9 Letter Tiles. Instructions: Read the hint. Unscramble the tiles to reveal a sentence. Write the sentence on the line provided. (The answers are on page 9.) Example: (Hint): This sentence tells what my desk is made of. Mi escritorio es de madera. 1 (Hint): This sentence tells to whom the book belongs. 2 (Hint): This is an impersonal expression. 3 (Hint): This sentence describes a man with an inherent characteristic of sincerity. 4 (Hint). This sentence describes a family relationship.
English-Spanish Helpful Handouts Page 8 of 9 5 (Hint): This sentence describes a friend s profession as an engineer. 6 (Hint): This sentence tells the time. 7 (Hint): This sentence uses gender to identify someone. Double Puzzle. Instructions: Unscramble each of the clue sentences. Copy the letters in the numbered cells to the other cells with the same number. (The answers are on page 9.) (Hint): The first sentence is an impersonal expression about the time. The second sentence defines a person by gender. The third sentence tells what a dress is made of.
English-Spanish Helpful Handouts Page 9 of 9 Las Respuestas Matching c e g f h b n d o j i m l a Letter Tiles 1. El libro es de la muchacha. 2. Es importante. 3. Es un hombre sincero. 4. Ellos son primos. 5. Eres ingeniero. 6. Es la una. 7. Ella es una mujer. Double Puzzle 1. Es tarde. 2. Es un hombre 3. El vestido es de seda.