For what purposes do we use the verb ´ser¨? ¿Para qué usos se utiliza el verbo ser?

Question

There are four purposes to use the verb¨ser¨in Spanish, can you name them?

Answer 1

Verbo Ser:

El verbo ser se usa para describir a una persona, lugar o cosa.

John:

Es hombre

Es americano

Es blanco

Es alto

Es delgado

Es rubio

Es casado

Es testigo de Jehová

Es ingeniero civil

Es pobre

Es gimnasta

Es amable

Es inteligente...

Argentina:

Es un país muy bonito

Es pintoresco

Es extenso

Es turístico...

La escuela:

Es nueva

Es grande

Es hermosa

Es cercana a mi casa...

Answer 2

Everyone answered the question correctly, but then I’d love to explain it another way just to help.

(1) Ser is used to describe a topic or a subject with its natural traits or, permanent traits.

E.g. El sol es caliente.

(The sun is hot. - The sun is naturally hot, and the likelihood of it getting cold is inexistent.)

(Although it is also valid to say “El sol está caliente”, but implying the nuance of heat as a temporal physical state (that the sun will eventually cool down.))

La edificio en la calle 18´ es alto. (The building along 18th street is tall.) (A natural, permanent, unlikely to change trait.)

(2) In lieu of #1, Ser also then is used to explain a person’s non-temporal qualities.

Mercedes es muy linda. (Mercedes is very pretty.) Pretty being a natural trait, albeit temporal, it is not likely to change quickly.

Los estudiantes son muy inteligentes. (The students are very intelligent.)

(3) Also in lieu of #1, it also is used to indicate a persons nationality, race, creed, gender, and such, as these do not simply change over time, (or its likelihood to change is slim).

El Señor Aldama es Filipino. (Mr Aldama is Filipino.)

Mis padres son Católicos, pero yo soy un Cristiano regular. (My parents are Catholics, I however am a regular Christian.)

La persona [que está en la oficina] es mujer. (The person in the office is a woman.) (Also note that in this case, the subject is associated with another noun and not an adjective. Which leads to the fourth item.

(4) Ser is used to associate nouns to other nouns e.g.

Mis hermanos son doctores. (My brothers are doctors.) (Hermanos, and Doctores, are nouns associated with each other to form a description.)

(5) As basic as it is, Ser is used to express time. E.g.

Es la una. Son las tres y media. Son las cinco y cuarenta y cinco de la tarde. (1:00, 3:30, 5:45pm etc.)

Answer 3

The verb "ser," which is one of the four verbs in Spanish that can be translated as "to be," together with "estar," "hacer" and "haber," is used to describe defining attributes of an individual. High school teachers normally distinguish verbs "ser" and "estar" by stating that verb "ser" is used to refer to permanent characteristics of an individual , whereas "estar" is used for temporary conditions. However, that is wrong. Although it is true that "ser" is used to talk about the physical description of a person (gender, beauty, color of the hair, color of the eyes, height, etc.) and his/her personality, which is something that stays with us for the rest of our lives, it is also used to talk about our jobs (which we can change) and our nationality (which we can also change if we naturalize). Apart from that, "ser" is also used to talk about the religious beliefs (or any other kind of membership or association) of a person, the material with which an object is made, and our possession of an item (which could also change, as we know). Finally, verb "ser" can be used to express location, when we indicate that a ceremony, a party, a wedding, a game, etc. is taking place at a particular location.