Spanish verbs fall into different groups, and each group is conjugated a little differently. If you’re going to master Spanish verbs like ser , you need to be able to identify which group a verb belongs to: regular (follows regular conjugation rules for -ar, -er, and -ir verbs), stem-changing (morphs depending on how you use it in a sentence), spelling-changing (has consonant-spelling changes in some forms to follow pronunciation rules), or reflexive (reflects the action back on the subject of the sentence).
But then there are those verbs that refuse to be lumped into a category: the irregulars. Ser ( sehr ) (to be) is an irregular -er verb; it doesn’t follow most normal ending patterns, so your best bet is to just memorize its conjugations. Other popular irregular Spanish verbs include: estar, leer, tener, querer. Here it is in the present tense:
The Present Tense of Ser
| Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|
| yo soy | I am |
| tú eres | You (informal) are |
| él/ella/ello/uno es | He/she/one is |
| usted es | You (formal) are |
| nosotros somos | We are |
| vosotros sois | You all (informal) are |
| ellos/ellas son | They are |
| ustedes son | You all (formal) are |
The following examples show you ser in action:
- La boda es el veintisiete de junio. (The wedding is the 27th of June.)
- Ellos son mis abuelos. (They are my grandparents.)
The following table shows you ser at work in the preterit tense. Think you’ve seen these conjugations before? You probably have; it just so happens that they’re also the preterit forms of the verb ir (to go). It may be confusing, but look on the bright side: It’s one fewer set of verbs you have to memorize.
The Preterit Tense of Ser
| Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|
| yo fui | I was |
| tú fuiste | You (informal) were |
| él/ella/ello/uno fue | He/she/one was |
| usted fue | You (formal) were |
| nosotros fuimos | We were |
| vosotros fuisteis | You all (informal) were |
| ellos/ellas fueron | They were |
| ustedes fueron | You all (formal) were |
You use the preterit tense like this:
- Fuimos al baile anoche. (We went to the dance last night.)
- Fui a verte en tu casa. (I went to see you at your house.)
Ser is one of only three irregular imperfect verbs. Here’s that conjugation; notice that, like regular verbs, the first-person and third-person singular forms (yo and usted) are the same.
The Imperfect Tense of Ser
| Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|
| yo era | I used to be |
| tú eras | You (informal) used to be |
| él/ella/ello/uno era | He/she/one used to be |
| usted era | You (formal) used to be |
| nosotros éramos | We used to be |
| vosotros erais | You all (informal) used to be |
| ellos/ellas eran | They used to be |
| ustedes eran | You all (formal) used to be |
Here are some examples of the imperfect tense:
- Eramos futbolistas. (We used to be soccer players.)
- Shakespeare era un gran escritor. (Shakespeare was a great writer.)
Good news! Ser is regular in the future tense, so you can apply the regular verb endings here.
The Future Tense of Ser
| Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|
| yo seré | I will be |
| tú serás | You (informal) will be |
| él/ella/ello/uno será | He/she/one will be |
| usted será | You (formal) will be |
| nosotros seremos | We will be |
| vosotros seréis | You all (informal) will be |
| ellos/ellas serán | They will be |
| ustedes serán | You all (formal) will be |
The following samples put the future tense to work:
- María sera una gran bailarina. (Maria will be a great dancer.)
- Ustedes serán bienvenidos. (You will be welcome.)
