The Uses Of Ser

English-Spanish Helpful Handouts

Page 1 of 9 The Uses Of Ser

Ser is used when Be is followed by a noun.

Es un día bonito.

(It’s a beautiful day.)

Ser is used to describe what is permanent, inherent, or characteristic.

El hielo es frío.

(Ice is cold.)

Ser is used to tell the hour, day, and date.

Es el lunes, el veintinueve de julio.

(It’s July 29th.)

Ser is used to talk about place of origin.

Soy de Chile.

(I’m from Chile.) .

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Page 2 of 9 The Uses Of Ser

Ser is used to express possession.

El coche es mío.

(The car is mine.)

Ser is used with impersonal expressions.

Es posible.

(It’s possible.)

Ser is used to describe size and physical characteristics. It tells what something is made of.

Esta casa es de ladrillos.

(This house is brick.)

Ser is used to talk about religious and political affiliation.

Son católicas.

(They’re catholic.)

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Page 3 of 9 The Uses Of Ser

Ser is used to talk about nationality.

Ella es china.

(She’s Chinese.)

Ser is used to describe relationships.

Ellos son mis padres.

(They are my parents.)

Ser is used to describe personality characteristics.

Ustedes son cómicos.

(You’re funny.)

Ser is used to talk about profession.

Es soldado.

(He’s a soldier.)

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English-Spanish Helpful Handouts

Page 4 of 9 The Uses Of Ser

Ser is used to define or identify people, places, and things.

Éstas son flores.

(These are flowers.)

Ser is used to describe the natural color of something.

La leche es blanca.

(Milk is white.)

Ser is used to say where an event is taking place.

La fiesta es en la casa de Paula.

(The party is at Paula’s house.)

Ser is used in passive voice constructions to describe an action by a doer, that is an agent. The agent is introduced by por.

Los papeles son arreglados por el secretario cada mañana.

(The papers are arranged by the secretary every morning.)

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Page 5 of 9 The Uses Of Ser

Many adjectives can be used with either ser or estar. The meaning changes depending on the verb you choose.

abierto aburrido alegre alto atento bajo borracho bueno callado cansado cerrado cierto consciente despierto enfermo interesado limpio listo loco mal molesto nuevo muerto orgulloso preparado rico seguro simpรกtico triste verde violento vivo

Ser

Estar

frank boring lighthearted tall, high courteous short, low drunkard good (character) taciturn tiresome narrow-minded sure aware alert, sharp invalid self-seeking well-groomed clever silly (character) bad (character) annoying newly-made killed in action proud (derogatory) ready, prepared rich safe, reliable likeable (character) dull green violent lively

open bored happy in a high position attentive in a low position drunk well (health) silent tired closed true conscious (awake) awake unwell interested clean ready frantic sick (health) bothered unused dead proud of someone/something learned delicious assured, confident libkable a the present time sad not ripe embarrassed alive

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Page 6 of 9 The Uses Of Ser

Matching.

Instructions: Match each sentence with the reason that it uses ser. (The answers are on page 9.) a. Los formularios son llenados por los empleados.

__c__ Inherent characteristic

b. La falda es de lana.

_____ Hour, date, or day

c. El hierro es duro.

_____ Origin

d. Es Español.

_____ Possesion

e. Son las cinco y media.

_____ Impersonal Expression

f. El cristal es mío.

_____ Describes what something is made of

g. ¿De dónde eres?

_____ Religious or political affiliation

h Es verdad.

_____ Nationality

i Es médico.

_____ Relationship

j. Ella es amable.

_____ Personality characteristic.

k. Madrid es la capital de España.

_____ Profession

l. El baile es en la universidad.

_____ Definition

m. Las manzanas son rojas.

_____ Natural color

n. Esos señores son protestantes.

_____ Location of an event

o. Vosotros sois mis hermanos.

_____ Passive voice

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English-Spanish Helpful Handouts

Page 7 of 9 The Uses Of Ser

Letter Tiles.

Instructions: Read the hint. Unscramble the tiles to reveal a sentence. Write the sentence on the line provided.

(The answers are on page 9.)

Example: (Hint): This sentence tells what my desk is made of.

Mi escritorio es de madera.

1 (Hint): This sentence tells to whom the book belongs.

______________________________________________________________________________ 2 (Hint): This is an impersonal expression.

________________________________________________________________________________ 3 (Hint): This sentence describes a man with an inherent characteristic of sincerity.

_________________________________________________________________________________ 4 (Hint). This sentence describes a family relationship.

________________________________________________________________________________

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Page 8 of 9 The Uses Of Ser

5 (Hint): This sentence describes a friend’s profession as an engineer.

_______________________________________________________________________________________ 6 (Hint): This sentence tells the time.

________________________________________________________________________________________________ 7 (Hint): This sentence uses gender to identify someone.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Double Puzzle.

Instructions: Unscramble each of the clue sentences. Copy the letters in the numbered cells to the other cells with the same number. (The answers are on page 9.)

(Hint): The first sentence is an impersonal expression about the time. The second sentence defines a person by gender. The third sentence tells what a dress is made of.

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Page 9 of 9 The Uses Of Ser

Las Respuestas Matching c e g f h b n d o j i m l a Letter Tiles 1. El libro es de la muchacha.

2. Es importante.

3. Es un hombre sincero.

4. Ellos son primos.

5. Eres ingeniero.

6. Es la una.

7. Ella es una mujer.

Double Puzzle 1. Es tarde.

2. Es un hombre 3. El vestido es de seda.

Free handout - http://sites.google.com/site/englishspanishhelpfulhandouts. Written by S. Watson. Photos: Google Images (Creative Commons License) and D. Sharon Pruitt