To Be — English Conjugation
🇪🇸 Para hispanohablantes: "To be" equivale a SER y ESTAR en español. Es el verbo más irregular e importante del inglés.
To be is the most important and irregular verb in English. It corresponds to both "ser" and "estar" in Spanish. Mastering its forms across all tenses is essential for English fluency.
Full Conjugation Table
Example Sentences
I am a teacher.
🇪🇸 Yo soy/estoy profesor.
She is very happy today.
🇪🇸 Ella está muy feliz hoy.
We were at home yesterday.
🇪🇸 Estábamos en casa ayer.
He was sick last week.
🇪🇸 Él estuvo enfermo la semana pasada.
They will be here tomorrow.
🇪🇸 Ellos estarán aquí mañana.
I have been waiting for an hour.
🇪🇸 He estado esperando por una hora.
Common Mistakes for Spanish Speakers
❌ Forgetting 'is' for he/she/it
Spanish uses 'es/está' for all third person singular. In English you MUST use 'is' for he/she/it — never 'are'. ❌ 'She are happy' ✅ 'She is happy'
❌ Confusing was/were
In Spanish imperfecto uses era/estaba for all persons. In English: I/he/she/it = WAS, you/we/they = WERE. ❌ 'You was there' ✅ 'You were there'
❌ To be vs to have for age
Spanish uses tener for age ('Tengo 25 años') but English uses to be: 'I am 25 years old'. Never 'I have 25 years'.
❌ Dropping to be in continuous tenses
English needs 'to be' for continuous tenses. ❌ 'She working' ✅ 'She is working'. In Spanish you can sometimes drop estar but in English you cannot.
Quick Practice Quiz
I ___ a student. (Soy estudiante.)