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There are two 'to be' verbs in Spanish. Estar is used to describe the current state of something- how it is at that moment. Ser is used to describe the nature and characteristics of something.
| La noche es oscura. | Night is dark. (in general) | |
| El cuarto está oscuro. Las luces no funcionan. |
The room is dark. The lights aren't working. |
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| Jorge es guapo. | Jorge is a handsome guy. | |
| Jorge está guapo. | Jorge looks handsome. (Maybe he is wearing a suit or combed his hair) |
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| La falda es roja. | The skirt is red. | |
| El semáforo está rojo. | The street light is red. | |
| Maria es loca. Ella vive en un manicomio. |
Mary is crazy. She lives in an insane asylum. |
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| Maria está loca. | Maria is crazy (at this moment). | |
| Irene es alegre. | Irene is a happy person. | |
| Eduardo está alegre. | Eduardo is happy (right now). |
Estar is also used to to when describing location.
| Tus padres están aqui. | Your parents are here. | |
| La salida está allá. | The exit is there. |
Both ser and estar are irregular verbs...
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When verbs are strung together, the first verb indicates the person and the tense. The infinitive is used for the second verb.
| El va a llamar más tarde. | He is going to call later. | |
| Tu debes ir más temprano. | You should go earlier. | |
| Ella nunca puede llegar a tiempo. | She can never arrive on time. | |
| Yo quiero ser ingeniero. | I want to be an engineer. |
Now would be a good time to study miscellaneous irregular verbs.
