like if I want to say I am shy..I say "Soy timida or estoy timida ?
I am a girl.
2006-11-02 23:58:06 · 10 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
Kim, that is a good question. Many foreigners are confused with this. Several languages like French, German, and others lack that difference and is difficult for a person whose native language lacks this difference.
Soy refers to your person, your qualities, your characteristics. As you said: "soy una mujer" means something that refers to your person. You are telling your gender, something inherent to you.
Estoy refers more to location, where you are. It can also mean your appearance: "estoy elegante", something that can be different at a different moment. Now you are elegant, later you are not. Now I am confused, later I will not be, but you will be a woman no matter what. Here you say: "soy"
First time in my life that I think so deeply about this. I hope this can explain the meaning
2006-11-03 04:27:55 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 1⤋
both are correct on most counts But soy timida means your shy Like almost that is who you are. Where as estoy is To be shy. Yo estoy muy timida total tiempo. I'm shy all the time. Hope this help you a bit. You can get some good infor on stucture at "about.com" nice site to surf for learning languages.
2006-11-03 12:34:39 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
A general rule that can help you to remember when to use ser and estar is that ser is often used for permanent characteristics, while estar is used for temporary or unexpected conditions, or location.
Therefore, if you are a permanently shy person; that is, being shy is part of your personality, you should say, "Soy tímida." (permanent)
If you are normally not shy, but are just having a temporary feeling of shyness (because you are speaking in front of a large group, for example), "Estoy tímida." (temporary or unexpected)
Remember that estar is always for location. So "España está en Europa," even though Spain is always in the same location.
There are a few more intricacies of ser vs. estar that you might want to learn later on. But try to master what I've given you first. You can tweak your usage later.
The previous answerer makes a good point that some things you use with ser are not permanent, like being a little kid. But if something is really unexpected or unusual, use estar. For example, "Las naranjas están verdes." ("The oranges are green.") Oranges aren't usually green, so this is unexpected.
2006-11-03 16:09:18 · answer #3 · answered by drshorty 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Soy means something that is an attribute of you, yourself--like "soy una chica" (I am a girl). Estoy implies a condition that you are experiencing at a certain time, as in "estoy fria"--I am cold. So you would say "estoy timida", b/c being shy is a condition. It is not who you are. Make sense?
2006-11-03 00:02:34 · answer #4 · answered by peachy78 5 · 1⤊ 4⤋
I am a native speaker of the language. In the case of tímida, there is no room for doubt. You can only say "soy tímida". There are some cases in which you might convey a different meaning by using "ser" or "estar", but this is not the case. For further explanation, do not hesitate to ask.
2006-11-03 09:05:15 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Very simply, they both mean "to be". Soy is used for things that are permanent, or essential. Estoy refers to the state in which you find something, such as location, or emotional condition, or whether you are wet or dry or hot or cold etc.
-Estoy en casa -- I'm at home
-Soy un estúpido -- I'm stupid
It's a difference of meaning, anyway. "Estar" implies location, I mean "to be situated in" and "ser" is simply "to be".
2006-11-03 00:55:23 · answer #6 · answered by Irmak 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Soy tímida means that a person who is usually shy. They have a shy personality.
Estoy tímida means that a person is just being shy at a certain moment. This person can have an outgoing personality but when they get on stage, they start to clam up and become shy.
2006-11-03 01:58:19 · answer #7 · answered by ako lang 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Soy is more permanent. It's a state of existence. Estoy is more temporary - conditional.
"Soy de New York." I am of New York. (I'm from New York.)
"Estoy en New York." I am in New York. (But I'm not staying!)
2006-11-03 00:01:22 · answer #8 · answered by itsnotarealname 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
"Soy" is used for describing characteristics or things of a permanent nature such as "I am an American", "I am tall".
"Estoy" is used in the temporary sense and to describe location, such as "I am standing", "I am by the corner".
Since "I am shy" describes a characteristic of the person, you use "soy".
2006-11-03 00:06:05 · answer #9 · answered by Einmann 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
you say "estoy" for the place that you are in, like locality "estoy" is from the verb " estar" and you say "soy" when you say your name or when you say how are you feeling
2006-11-03 00:03:24 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋