{"id":3217,"date":"2011-08-11T14:58:43","date_gmt":"2011-08-11T18:58:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/spanish\/?p=3217"},"modified":"2011-08-11T14:58:43","modified_gmt":"2011-08-11T18:58:43","slug":"ser-y-estar-jugando-con-frases-hechas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/spanish\/ser-y-estar-jugando-con-frases-hechas\/","title":{"rendered":"“Ser y estar”, jugando con frases hechas"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’m sure you have studied the differences between \u201cser\u201d and \u201cestar\u201d tons of times, but as I see there are some friends asking about them these days both in our blog and the Transparent Spanish page, I think it’s a good idea to review them, now in a particular way: we are going to see how we use these verbs in some \u201cfrases hechas<\/strong><\/em>\u201d (idioms).<\/p>\n

First of all, let\u2019s remember how these two verbs are used:<\/p>\n

\u201cSer<\/strong><\/em>\u201d is used to express:<\/p>\n

the hour, day, and date<\/p>\n

place of origin<\/p>\n

occupation<\/p>\n

nationality<\/p>\n

religious or political affiliation<\/p>\n

the material something is made of<\/p>\n

possession<\/p>\n

relationship of one person to another<\/p>\n

certain impersonal expressions<\/p>\n

where an event is taking place<\/p>\n

essential qualities<\/p>\n

\u201cEstar<\/strong><\/em>\u201d is used to express:<\/p>\n

geographic or physical location<\/p>\n

state or condition<\/p>\n

many idiomatic expressions<\/p>\n

progressive tenses<\/p>\n

In Spanish we have a lot of idiomatic expressions using both verbs:<\/p>\n

– Ser la oveja negra de la familia.\u00a0 To be the black sheep<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

– Estar de mala leche. To be in a bad mood<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

– Ser harina de otro costal. To be a horse of a different color<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

-No ser nada del otro jueves. To be no big deal<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

– Estar mano sobre mano. To twiddle one’s thumbs <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

– Ser cerrado de mollera. To be pig-headed.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Do you think you will guess which verb is the correct one in these sentences, and even more difficult, what their meaning is?<\/p>\n

– Mi vecino _______ m\u00e1s bueno que el pan.<\/p>\n

– No _______ el horno para bollos.<\/p>\n

– He trabajado much\u00edsimo hoy, _______ hecha papilla.<\/p>\n

– Aunque parezca una mujer fuerte, no _______ de hierro.<\/p>\n

– Siempre puedes contar con \u00e9l, _________ a las duras y a las maduras.<\/p>\n

– Todos los d\u00edas tiene alg\u00fan problema, \u00a1 _______ el cuento de nunca acabar!<\/p>\n

– \u00bfEn qu\u00e9 est\u00e1s pensando? \u00a1_______ en los cerros de \u00dabeda!<\/p>\n

– Su negocio fue a la ruina, ahora _______ con una mano delante y otra atr\u00e1s.<\/p>\n

– Siempre hay que esperarla, ______ m\u00e1s lenta que el caballo del malo.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I’m sure you have studied the differences between \u201cser\u201d and \u201cestar\u201d tons of times, but as I see there are some friends asking about them these days both in our blog and the Transparent Spanish page, I think it’s a good idea to review them, now in a particular way: we are going to see…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":47,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[2107,82,2505],"class_list":["post-3217","post","type-post","status-publish","hentry","category-vocabulary","tag-estar","tag-idioms","tag-ser"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t