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Guidebook · Unit 1 · A1

First Steps

Pronouns and the verbs to be

  1. 1

    ¡Hola! — and who's who

    Greet people the Spanish way and meet the personal pronouns — including vosotros.

    • ¡Hola! ¿Qué tal? is the everyday greeting; answer Muy bien, ¿y tú?
    • Buenos días / Buenas tardes / Buenas noches greet by time of day.
    • Encantado / encantada (nice to meet you) agrees with the person speaking.
    • The pronouns: yo, tú, usted, él/ella, nosotros, vosotros, ustedes, ellos/ellas.
    • In Spain, tú and vosotros are the everyday "you"; usted and ustedes are formal.
    • Nosotras, vosotras, ellas only for all-female groups.
    Open lesson
  2. 2

    Ser: who you are

    The verb for identity, origin, nationality and profession — and how to introduce yourself.

    • Ser is "to be" for identity, origin, nationality and profession.
    • Present forms: soy, eres, es, somos, sois, son.
    • Usted takes the él / ella form (es); ustedes takes the ellos / ellas form (son).
    • Origin is ser de: Soy de Boston. Nationalities take a small letter: española.
    • No article before a bare profession: Soy estudiante.
    • The pronoun is usually dropped: Soy Marina rather than Yo soy Marina.
    Open lesson
  3. 3

    Estar: how and where you are

    The “to be” of moods, conditions and location — and when it beats ser.

    • Estar is "to be" for feelings, temporary conditions and location.
    • Present forms: estoy, estás, está, estamos, estáis, están.
    • Ser = what something is; estar = how or where it is.
    • For moods and conditions: could it change by tomorrow? → estar.
    • Where people and things are takes estar: Madrid está en el centro de España.
    • ¿Cómo estás? — Estoy bien, gracias.
    Open lesson
  4. 4

    Tener: what you have

    Possession, age and feelings like hunger with tener — then all three core verbs side by side.

    • Tener = to have: tengo, tienes, tiene, tenemos, tenéis, tienen.
    • Age uses tener: Tengo 22 años — never soy 22 años.
    • So do hunger, thirst, cold and heat: tengo hambre, tengo sed, tengo frío, tengo calor.
    • The big three: ser for identity, estar for states and location, tener for possession and age.
    Open lesson
Unit review