What is the difference between ser and estar in portuguese

For instance, we may get sick every now and then:. So, whether you feel sick or spirited, happy or sad, hungry or thirsty … you use estar to express those physiological and psychological states — they all are, in essence, temporary. Is it too hot? Well, wait one minute or two until you can drink it. You see what I am getting at, right? Estar is the right one in this context:. Here, we are required to discern permanent from temporary physical states. For instance, while sitting next to you watching you drink your tea I could ask:.

So, the question above refers to a permanent property of the tea, thus the verb ser. Maybe in Dublin next year? You can always move around and change places circumstantial :. The same applies to objects in general — we move them around. Stuff such as chairs, pens, carrots, clothes, scissors, and cars are inherently moveable:.

Some cursing came along with the last example! The idea that ser is used in association with permanent states and estar with temporary permeated the whole article. Keeping that in mind will help you to pick the right verb according to the context. While the mentioned principle holds well in general, there will always be exceptions breaking the rule.

As a matter of fact, there are several situations where either verb would work just as well. Possibly, someone learning Portuguese could find estar illogical by holding that marriage, by definition, implies a permanent state.

Well, kind of. The reverse argument could also be made. But these discussions are fruitless. The thing is that logic and languages are not best friends. We may strive to tidy them up and to make sense of them, but languages have a life of their own and not without idiosyncrasies.

Even advanced learners will, every now and then, use ser when they are supposed to use estar , and vice-versa. See, it takes a solid idiomatic feel for the language to avoid these small mistakes. Increase your Portuguese vocab faster with higher word-retention rates. Do you know what constipado means in Portuguese?

Probably not what you are thinking Get a list of 29 must-know English-Portuguese false friends and be surprised. It's for free! Are you struggling with your pronunciation? I am single, but he is married. Pablo is a teacher. It is 3 pm now.

He is from Argentina. He is Argentinian. My name is Marcela. My address is Rua Farme de Amoedo, Her phone number is That is a chair. The is a chocolate cake. This is a cotton shirt. This pen is made for writting. These chocolates are for Jean. The museum is that way. One of the difficult things for English speakers to learn in Portuguese is to distinguish between estar and ser , which both mean to be. Ser is used for permanent conditions, permanent physical characteristics, to describe a profession or nationality, or location.

The famous building is in France. This is a compliment, since it means the girl is beautiful, all the time, as something that defines her. Build vocabulary, practice pronunciation, and more with Transparent Language Online. Available anytime, anywhere, on any device.

I think that it would be wise to talk about the exceptions to the rule, since some are very important. About being dead for instance. How similar is the portuguese spoken in brazil compared to Angola. The main expection for ser in Portuguese is the use for locations of bulidings and places. In Spanish ser is only used for locations of events.