Transcript SER and SUBJECT PRONOUNS

SER
and
SUBJECT PRONOUNS
Do you know what’s meant by 1st person, 2nd person, 3rd
person?
1st person is the person who is speaking – I
2nd is the person to whom one is speaking – you
3rd is the person about whom one is speaking -- he,
she, it
I, you, he, she, it are all singular pronouns. Each refers
to one person. But we also have plural pronouns:
1st person plural = I + another person = we
2nd person plural = you + another person = y’all
3rd person plural = he/she/it + another person = they
These pronouns are called SUBJECT PRONOUNS:
I
you
he, she, it
we
y’all
they
What that means is that these pronouns are used
as the SUBJECT of the sentence:
I read a book. (Not *Me read a book.)
You read a book. (Not *Your read a book.)
He reads a book. (Not *Him reads a book.)
1st person
2nd person
3rd person
singular
I
you
he, she, it
plural
we
y’all
they
Pronouns are ALWAYS in this order. When
you learn pronouns in any language, this is the
order in which you’ll find them. When you learn
the verbs that go with the pronouns, the verbs
will always be in this order, too.
Following are the Spanish subject pronouns:
yo
nosotros(as*)
tú
vosotros(as*)
él, ella, Usted (Ud.) ellos, ellas, ustedes (Uds.)
*-as ending is used when the entire group is female / a masculine
group OR a mixed group uses the –os ending
They correspond to the following subject pronouns:
I
you (friendly)
he, she, it,
you (formal)
we (masc/fem forms)
y’all (only used in Spain)
they, you all (formal, Spain
but used exclusively in
other Hispanic nations)
So what’s the difference between all those “you’s???”
Ud. – use this with people you should show respect to, people
who are older than you, or to someone in a position of authority.
If you call the person Mr./Mrs./Ms./Miss/Dr./Prof. + last name,
you should use “Ud.” instead of “tú.”
tú – use this If you call the person by his first name, such as with
friends, family members, or young children even if you don’t
know them that well
vosotros – use this plural, friendly form with friends, but only in
Spain (and you’ll see it in classical literature, the Bible, etc, too)
Uds. – use this in Latin America, no matter who you’re talking to.
You can translate it as “you-guys” / “you all” / or “y’all.”
One special thing to note about Ud. and Uds:
Ud. and Uds. always act like 3rd person pronouns,
for every part of speech that we learn - verbs,
etc - even though they mean “you.” They do
NOT use the 2nd person forms. They will
always use the same forms as those used by
“él” and “ella” / “ellos” and “ellas”
You will understand this better as we try some
examples…
SER
“Ser” means “to be.” It’s the most irregular
verb there is in both English and Spanish.
am
are
are
are
is
are
Here are the Spanish words for the above:
soy
somos
eres
sois
es
son
Remember that you don’t usually have to use the pronouns.
Look at the Spanish forms of “ser”:
soy
eres
es
somos
sois
son
All of them are different. So “soy” all by itself means “I am.”
“Soy” can never mean anything but “I am.” When you look at
the verb, you know what the subject has to be.
Sometimes you may choose to use the pronoun “yo” to give
emphasis to the pronoun. You will also need to use the
pronouns for third person “es” IF it is not clear who you’re
referring to, but you can otherwise leave it out. You have four
choices for 3rd person – he, she, it, or you – so you may need
to clarify the meaning with a pronoun.
Now you try!
son
Ellos _______
es
Juan _______
(Note: “Juan” is the same as “él.”)
somos
Elena y yo ______ (Note: “Elena y yo” is the same as “nosotros.”)
es
Ud. ___________
eres
Tú ___________
Yo ____soy____
Here are some examples of sentences using the verb SER:
Yo soy americano.
Tú eres muy simpatico.
Él es un muchacho mexicano.
Ella no es pelirroja.
Usted es bastante alto.
Nosotros* somos perezosos.
Vosotros* sois alumnos.
Ellos son cubanos.
Ellas no son rubias.
Ustedes son guapos.
I am American.
You are very nice.
He is a Mexican boy.
She is not a redhead.
You are pretty tall.
We are lazy.
Y’all are students.
They (males or mixed group)
are Cubans.
They (females) are not blonde.
You all are handsome.
*(nosotras / vosotras would use the same verb forms as nosotros / vosostros)