Ser conjugation

Ser means "to be (identity, traits)". Here it is in every main tense, with real example sentences and a free checker for your own.

Meaningto be (identity, traits)

Type-er verb

Gerundsiendo

Past participlesido

Ser changes form (an irregular, stem-changing or spelling-changing form) in the present, preterite, imperfect and present subjunctive. Juntos teaches Latin American Spanish, where ustedes replaces vosotros; the vosotros forms are shown for completeness.

Quick answer. Present: soy, eres, es, somos, son. Preterite: fui, fuiste, fue, fuimos, fueron. All tenses below.

Ser conjugation tables

Jump to: present · preterite · imperfect · future · conditional · present subjunctive · present perfect · commands (imperative)

Ser in the present

what happens now or usually

yo	soy
tú	eres
él / ella / usted	es
nosotros	somos
vosotros (Spain)	sois
ellos / ustedes	son

Ser in the preterite

a finished action at a specific time

yo	fui
tú	fuiste
él / ella / usted	fue
nosotros	fuimos
vosotros (Spain)	fuisteis
ellos / ustedes	fueron

Ser in the imperfect

habits, descriptions and background in the past

yo	era
tú	eras
él / ella / usted	era
nosotros	éramos
vosotros (Spain)	erais
ellos / ustedes	eran

Ser in the future

what will happen

yo	seré
tú	serás
él / ella / usted	será
nosotros	seremos
vosotros (Spain)	seréis
ellos / ustedes	serán

Ser in the conditional

what would happen

yo	sería
tú	serías
él / ella / usted	sería
nosotros	seríamos
vosotros (Spain)	seríais
ellos / ustedes	serían

Ser in the present subjunctive

after wishes, doubts and requests (quiero que…)

yo	sea
tú	seas
él / ella / usted	sea
nosotros	seamos
vosotros (Spain)	seáis
ellos / ustedes	sean

Ser in the present perfect

what has happened, up to now (he comido)

yo	he sido
tú	has sido
él / ella / usted	ha sido
nosotros	hemos sido
vosotros (Spain)	habéis sido
ellos / ustedes	han sido

Ser in the commands (imperative)

telling someone to do something (habla, no hables)

tú	sé
tú (no)	no seas
usted	sea
nosotros	seamos
vosotros (Spain)	sed
ustedes	sean

Ser in real sentences

Example sentences from the Juntos exercise bank, each checked before learners see it.

Present

¿De dónde eres tú?
Where are you from?
Me llamo María y soy de España.
My name is María and I am from Spain.

Preterite

El viaje fue muy divertido.
The trip was very fun.
Pues, digamos que fue bastante complicado.
Well, let's say it was pretty complicated.

Imperfect

Era una tarde nublada cuando llegamos.
It was a cloudy afternoon when we arrived.
Cuando era niño, comía mucho pan tostado.
When I was a child, I used to eat a lot of toast.

Mistakes learners make with ser

Ser is for what something is: identity, origin, job and time: soy de Perth, es médica, son las tres.
Feelings and locations take estar: estoy aburrido. Soy aburrido means you are boring.
Ser and ir share the preterite: fui means both "I was" and "I went". The rest of the sentence tells them apart.

Write your own sentence with ser

Next step for ser: the ser vs estar course, free. Not sure which past tense to use? The Spanish past tense course explains preterite vs imperfect with practice. Conjugate any other verb with the free Spanish conjugator, browse all 72 verb pages, or check any text with the free Spanish grammar checker.

Related verbs

Previous: sentirse · Next: estar · all verbs

estar conjugation
to be (state, location)
tener conjugation
to have
hacer conjugation
to do / to make
poder conjugation
to be able to (can)
querer conjugation
to want / to love
saber conjugation
to know (a fact) / to know how
poner conjugation
to put
ver conjugation
to see / to watch

Use ser in real conversation

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Questions people ask

Is ser irregular in Spanish?

Yes. Ser is irregular in most tenses: the present, preterite, imperfect and present subjunctive all change form, so it's worth learning by heart.

What is the preterite of ser?

Yo fui, tú fuiste, él/ella fue, nosotros fuimos, ellos/ustedes fueron.

How do you conjugate ser in the present?

Yo soy, tú eres, él/ella es, nosotros somos, ellos/ustedes son.

What is the future of ser?

Yo seré, tú serás, él/ella será, nosotros seremos, ellos/ustedes serán.

What is the present subjunctive of ser?

Que yo sea, que tú seas, que él/ella sea, que nosotros seamos, que ellos/ustedes sean.