Ser conjugation: A full guide to the conjugation of Ser in Spanish

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Ser is one of the most fundamental and versatile verbs in the Spanish language. In addition to understanding its proper use, knowing each ser conjugation will help you lay the groundwork for your Spanish journey.

In this post we’ll give you everything you need to know about this verb, including every ser conjugation in all the Spanish tenses. We’ll begin with the uses of ser, and then cover all of the conjugations. We’ll break it down by mood, and give you a ser conjugation chart for each tense to provide a full guide that you can come back to whenever you need!

Uses of Ser

Before we dive into ser conjugation, let’s briefly discuss the meanings and usage of this fundamental verb. At its most basic, the translation of ser in English is to be.

First of all, let’s remember that there are two verbs that express the idea of to be in Spanish: ser and estar. We’ll keep our focus on ser in this post. For an in-depth comparison of the two verbs for to be in Spanish, check out our guide to Ser vs Estar for thorough explanations and examples comparing the two. And for a similar post to this one, check out our post on estar conjugation.

As for the main uses of ser in Spanish, it’s used to express things like identity, origin, profession, characteristics, time, possession, and relations. Ser is often thought of as the verb to refer to permanent states, even though some of the states we’ve just mentioned can be impermanent.

Let’s take a quick look with some examples:

• Ustedes son mis mejores amigos. – You guys are my best friends.

• Luz es colombiana. – Luz is Colombian.

• Yo soy profesora de español. – I am a Spanish teacher.

• Esas flores son muy bonitas. – Those flowers are very pretty.

• Son las tres de la tarde. – It is three in the afternoon.

• El suéter azul es de Pablo. – The blue sweater is Pablo’s.

• Nosotras somos las hermanas de Joaquín. – We are Joaquin’s sisters.

Ser conjugation

Ser is an irregular verb, meaning that its conjugation does not follow the regular patterns of regular verbs. Understanding how to conjugate ser correctly is essential for any Spanish learner. Through the rest of this post, we provide a comprehensive guide to the conjugation of ser in Spanish in every mood and tense.

We include links to specific posts describing most of the tenses as they’re introduced. Otherwise, check out our big post on all the Spanish verb tenses for a broad overview of each and every Spanish tense.

Indicative mood

The indicative mood is employed to express factual and definite information or states. This section provides an overview of the various tenses utilized within the indicative mood, including the present, preterite, imperfect, conditional, and future tenses, as well as all the perfect forms of the verb ser.

Ser conjugation present

Note how irregular the present ser conjugation is. This is one of those conjugations to be learned by heart, but don’t worry, since it’s a very common verb, practice will help you learn it faster.

Check out our post on the simple present tense for a deeper explanation of this tense.

Ser conjugation preterite

Here, we’ll provide you with the ser preterite conjugation chart. The conjugation here follows a more stable pattern, with the stem being fu- and following the regular endings of the preterite, except for the first person.

• Yo fui estudiante de esa universidad. – I was a student of that college.

• Ustedes no fueron responsables, no entregaron los deberes a tiempo. – You guys were not responsible, you did not hand in your homework on time.

• ¿Ella fue gimnasta cuando era joven? – She was a gymnast when she was young?

For more on the preterite tense, we refer you to our post on how to master the Spanish preterite in minutes.

Ser imperfect conjugation

The conjugation of ser in the imperfect tense follows the regular imperfect tense endings, with the stem being er-. Note that éramos, the first person plural conjugation of ser, has an accent on the first syllable to preserve the pronunciation.

• Eran las tres en punto cuando me llamaste. – It was three o’clock when you called me.

• ¿Esa era tu billetera? – Was that your wallet?

• Luisa y yo éramos mejores amigos en la escuela. – Luisa and I were best friends in school.

As we’ve just seen, there are two tenses used in Spanish to talk about the past. If you want more details on when to use each one, first check out our beginner’s guide to the Spanish imperfect tense, and then our anti-confusion guide to preterite vs imperfect tenses. In addition, we even have a dedicated post on ser and estar in the past tense.

Ser conditional tense

The conditional tense ser conjugation is regular, meaning that the stem ser- is the same for each grammatical person and the endings are those of regular verbs.

Ser in the conditional tense is translated into English as would be.

• Tú serías un excelente padre. – You’d be an excellent father.

• No serían tan fuertes si no entrenaran todos los días. – They would not be so strong if they didn’t train every day.

• ¿Sería mejor si te llamo a las tres en vez de a las dos? – Would it be better if I call you at three instead of two?

The Spanish conditional tense is very learner-friendly. Check out our guide to conditional Spanish for a detailed lesson on its use.

Ser future tense

The conjugation of ser follows the regular conjugation rules for this tense. All you have to do is add the proper tense endings to the infinitive ser. In its future tense conjugation, ser is translated into English as will be.

• Yo seré veterinaria cuando sea grande. – I will be a veterinarian when I grow up.

• Pronto serán las siete, ¿ya estás listo? No quiero llegar tarde. – Soon it will be seven, are you ready? I don’t want to be late.

• Nos casaremos el 3 de marzo, no será una boda grande. – We’ll get married on March 3rd, it won’t be a big wedding.

For a more in-depth understanding of the simple future tense and other concepts surrounding it, head over to our post on future tense Spanish.

Compound tenses

Now that we’ve covered the simple indicative tenses, it’s time to dive into our ser conjugation chart for the perfect forms. To form these, we must conjugate the auxiliary verb haber and add the ser past participle, which is sido.

For explanations of these two components of compound verbs, check out our post on the Spanish past participle, and the auxiliary verb haber.

For progressive tenses, we use siendo, which is the gerund of ser.

Let’s begin with the present perfect and past perfect conjugations of ser.

• Ana y yo hemos sido mejores amigas desde el preescolar. – We’ve been best friends since preschool.

• Los materiales habían sido adquiridos antes de hacer el presupuesto. – The materials had been acquired prior to budgeting.

Now, let’s move to the conjugation of ser in the remaining indicative compound tenses: perfect future and perfect conditional.

• Ya habrás sido ascendida para cuando la campaña termine. – You will already have been promoted by the time the campaign ends.

• Ustedes no habrían sido buenas enfermeras con ese miedo a la sangre. – You would not have been good nurses with that fear of blood.

Refer to our specific articles to find detailed explanations for each of these indicative perfect tenses: present perfect Spanish, past perfect Spanish, future perfect Spanish, and the Spanish conditional.

Subjunctive mood

The subjunctive mood in Spanish is used to express doubt, uncertainty, desire, necessity, or hypothetical situations. This mood can be a bit tricky to learn, so we recommend you to check out our post on the Spanish subjunctive simplified for beginners for a full lesson. Besides, since the subjunctive isn’t used the same way in English, the translations aren’t always exact.

Now, let’s dive into our ser subjunctive conjugation charts.

Ser present subjunctive

The conjugation of ser in present subjunctive is simple. Just add the regular endings to the stem se- as if it were a regular -er verb.

• No creo que seas capaz de llegar tarde a tu propia boda. – I don’t think you’d be capable of being late for your own wedding.

• Ojalá la fiesta sea en ese salón. – I hope the party is in that room.

• Me siento mal, ¿crees que sea gripe? – I feel sick, do you think it may be the flu?

For a better understanding of this tense, we recommend our post on present subjunctive Spanish.

Ser imperfect subjunctive

The stem for the conjugation of ser in the imperfect subjunctive is fue-. Note that there are two correct ways to conjugate verbs in this tense, so we’ve included both. Plus, keep in mind the accent in both conjugations of the first person plural to preserve the pronunciation.

• Si esas chicas fuesen más amables, tendrían más amigos. – If those girls were nicer, they would have more friends.

• Si no fueras mi amigo, estaría enojado contigo. – If you weren’t my friend, I would be mad at you.

• Si no fuéramos buenos trabajadores, no nos habrían ascendido. – If we were not good workers, we would not have been promoted.

Take a look at our in-depth post on the Spanish imperfect subjunctive for a comprehensive guide to this tense.

Ser future subjunctive

This tense is not commonly used in everyday contexts, and is only really found nowadays in literary or poetic contexts. Still, we’ve included it for a complete coverage of ser conjugation.

• Pero sea de donde fuere ese caballero, no deseo que esté en la corte. – But wherever that gentleman be from, I do not wish him to be in the court.

• Quienes fueren encontrados culpables, serán castigados. – Those who may be found guilty will be punished.

• Si fuéremos obligados a aceptar esas deplorables condiciones, huiría de inmediato. – If we were to be forced to accept these deplorable conditions, I would flee immediately.

Compound ser subjunctive conjugation

Similar to compound conjugations in the indicative mood, perfect forms in the subjunctive require the auxiliary verb haber plus the past participle, which, as we saw earlier, for ser is sido. The compound subjunctive tenses are perfect subjunctive and pluperfect subjunctive.

Note that since the pluperfect subjunctive relies on the auxiliary verb haber being conjugated in imperfect subjunctive, there are two correct forms.

Imperative mood

The imperative mood in Spanish is used to give commands, instructions, or express requests.

Note that the imperative mood ser conjugation is very similar to the present subjunctive conjugation. Pay attention to the context to determine which mood is being used.

• Sé amable y generoso con todas las personas. – Be kind and generous to all people.

• No sean tontos, por su puesto que sus padres los aman. – Don’t be silly, of course your parents love you.

• ¡Seamos amigos! – Let’s be friends!

Go to our post on Spanish commands to dive deeper into the Spanish imperative mood.

Conclusion

Today we covered the complete ser conjugation, and now it’s time for a quick recap.

We began by briefly discussing the meanings and uses of ser, which is commonly translated as to be when expressing identity, origin, profession, characteristics, time, possession, and relationships.

We observed that ser is an irregular verb that changes its stem in various tenses. We then presented a ser conjugation chart for each tense and mood, accompanied by numerous examples to aid your understanding. Additionally, we provided links to detailed posts on each specific tense to allow you to further your learning.

Mastering ser conjugation is crucial as it enables clear communication, comprehension of texts and conversations, it aids in basic sentence construction, it contributes to fluency in speaking, and it serves as a foundation for conjugating other verbs. Don’t forget to bookmark this page so you can come back to this full guide to ser conjugation whenever you need!

Ser conjugation exercises

How many of the ser conjugations did you learn? To end our post, we leave you with a series of exercises to allow you some practice with the conjugation of ser in Spanish!

Just provide the correct conjugation of ser according to the mood and tense in parentheses. The answers and translations are below.

1. Ojalá esa muñeca _____ mi regalo de cumpleaños. (subjunctive: present)

2. No _____ la mejor vendedora durante esta campaña, pero quiero mejorar. (indicative: present perfect)

3. ¡No _____ grosera con la maestra, hija! (imperative)

4. Cuando mi mamá _____ niña, tenía una bicicleta roja muy bonita. (indicative: imperfect)

5. Si ustedes no _____ tan distraídos, no habrían perdido las llaves. (subjunctive: imperfect)

6. ¡Este _____ el mejor viaje de todos los tiempos! (indicative: future)

7. Yo _____ venezolana y él _____ peruano! (indicative: present)

8. ¡Felicidades, su proyecto _____ el ganador! (indicative: preterite)

9. Si tú _____ más empático, Luisa no estaría triste. (subjunctive: pluperfect)

10. Si tú y yo _____ millonarios, tendríamos una mansión en París. (indicative: conditional)

Answers

1. Ojalá esa muñeca sea mi regalo de cumpleaños. – I hope that doll is my birthday gift.

2. No he sido la mejor vendedora durante esta campaña, pero quiero mejorar. – I have not been the best salesperson during this campaign, but I want to improve.

3. ¡No seas grosero con la maestra, hijo! – Don’t be rude with the teacher, son!

4. Cuando mi mamá era niña, tenía una bicicleta roja muy bonita. – When my mom was a little girl, she had a very lovely red bicycle.

5. Si ustedes no fueran / fuesen tan distraídos, no habrían perdido las llaves. – If you weren’t so absent-minded, you wouldn’t have lost your keys.

6. ¡Este será el mejor viaje de todos los tiempos! – This will be the best trip of all time!

7. Yo soy venezolana y él es peruano. – I am Venezuelan and he is Peruvian.

8. ¡Felicidades, su proyecto fue el ganador! – Congratulations, your project was the winner!

9. Si tú hubieras sido / hubieses sido más empático, Luisa no estaría triste. – If you had been more empathetic, Luisa would not be sad.

10. Si tú y yo fuéramos millonarios, tendríamos una mansión en París. – If you and I were millionaires, we’d have a mansion in Paris.

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