Es and está - What is the difference?

[Detective_Weasel]

“Es” and “está” both mean “is”, so what is the difference?

You use “es” when something is permanent, for example:

• Mi carro es rojo \ My car is red
• Ella es azul \ She is blue

You use “está” when something can change, for example:

• El hotel está cerrado \ The hotel is closed
• La niña está triste \ The girl is sad

And that’s it! I hope this lesson was understandable and helped you

[Lari1108]

Thank you so much for the explanation! This is very helpful!

[27sp.sandra]

Thank you, @Detective_Weasel for this explanation .

Remember that sometimes there are other cases where the permanence does not apply, for example:

• El cabello de Laura es negro. (Laura’s hair is black).
• Son las 11:45. (It’s 11:45 am)
• Carlos es joven. (Carlos is young)

This does not mean that she can’t change the colour of her hair, time is constantly changing and people are always aging . I know it can be confusing, so here is an article which explains the difference a little bit more in detail:

The big question: ¿Ser o estar?

The use of the verbs “ser” and “estar” is always something that brings a lot of doubt . It is common to say that the verb “ser” is used to talk about permanent situations or attributes and that the verb “estar” is used to indicate temporary states and locations. Nevertheless, it goes beyond those characteristics. Here I would like to share with you an image that will help you to know when exactly to use “ser” o “estar”:hugs:. [image] In order to remember all of them I have a trick f…

I hope it helps!

Have a nice week .