Adjectives that change meaning depending if you use them with “ser” or “estar” Ser and estar is one of those things Spanish students hate, they always question themshelves, is it “ser” in this sentences? It might be “estar” tho…

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Honestly I do not think “ser” and “estar” is that difficult, so if you are a newbie in the Spanish learning language, do not get scared! The problem is that it is one of the first bump into the “smooth” Spanish learning language, and that affects the students perception.

 

Anyway… I am not here to give you a lecture about “ser” and “estar”,  I have already wrote about it, if you want to have a look you can read this  http://spanishconnectionedinburgh.co.uk/ser-y-estar/

 

Today’s blog is about certain adjectives that you actually can use with both, is that not good news?

 

But….You know that nothing is that straight forward don’t you? So…there is a catch, depending the verb you choose the adjectives mean something different, is it not interesting?

 

Let’s have a look to these adjectives that change meaning  depending if you use them with “ser” or “estar”

 

Adjectives that change meaning  depending if you use them with “ser” or “estar”

If instead if reading you are more an audivisual person, you can watch the video for this lessonby clicking

here –>  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26FY52f_Lpc&feature=youtu.be

 

        Using with the verb     SER                        using with ESTAR

 

 

Aburrido                                                              boring                                                                                   bored

 

Ejemplo : Juan es una persona aburrida, nunca quiere hacer nada divertido

                Juan is a boring person, he never wants to do anything fun.    

But

Juan está aburrido,  lleva esperando a Carla más de 20 minutos.

                Juan is bored, he has been waiting for Carla more than 20 minutes.

 

Bajo                                                                       short                                                in a low  position/low mood (a bit depressed)

 

Ejemplo:  El edificio es bajo

                The building is short

But

El aire acondicionado está bajo

                The aircon is low(not very high)

 

El piso está en la planta baja

                The flat is on the ground floor

or

Estos días estoy un poco baja, no tengo mucha energía

                These days I am a bit low, I do not have much energy.

 

 

Callado                                                                 close mouthed                                                  silent/quiet

 

Ejemplo: Mi compañera nueva de trabajo es muy callada, no dice mucho

               My new colleague is very closemouthed, she doesn’t say much

But

No sé que están haciendo los niños, pero están muy callados

                  I don’t know what are the kids doing, but they are very quiet.

 

 

Seguro                                                                  safe/reliable                                                      sure/positive

 

Ejemplo:  El lugar más seguro durante un tornado es el sótano

                The safest place during a tornado is the basement

                Or

No te fíes de lo que te diga, no es una fuente muy segura

                Don’t trust what he says, he is not a very reliable source.

But

Estoy segura de que el cumpleaños de Carlos es  mañana

                I am positive Carlos’ bitrthday is tomorrow         

 

Vivo                                                                       lively                                                                      alive

 

Ejemplo: Mi sobrino es muy vivo, tiene mucha energía

                My nephew is very lively, he has lots of energy

But

Nuestro pájaro estaba muy enfermo, pero se recuperó y todavía está vivo

                Our bird was very sick, but he recovered and he is still alive.

 

#note-when something has a bright color in Spanish we can say that it is a vivid color, un color vivo, por ejemplo: me encanta tu chaqueta rosa vivo – I like your vivid pink jacket, or even, me encantan los colores vivos, I like vivid colors.

 

Now it is your turn, leave a comment below with one of the adjectives above and its two meaning, so you will need to write a comment with the verb “ser” and another with the verb “estar” with the same adjective, come on! It will be fun! I promise to give you some feedback too 🙂

 

I also have created a pdf where you could find all these examples above and some more and useful ones (like bien and buen used with “ser” and “estar” ). Download the pdf and add it to your Spanish blinder here https://blancadelatorre.kartra.com/page/m4a44

That is all for hoy amigo! But….

 

 

¡Hasta el próximo viernes!

 

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