Spanish Grammar For Dummies
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Spanish verbs fall into different groups, and each group is conjugated a little differently. If you’re going to master Spanish verbs like estar (ehs-tahr) (to be), you need to be able to identify which group a verb belongs to:
  • Regular: Follows regular conjugation rules for -ar, -er, and -ir verbs
  • Stem-changing: Morphs depending on how you use it in a sentence
  • Spelling-changing: Has consonant-spelling changes in some forms to follow pronunciation rules
  • Reflexive: Reflects the action back on the subject of the sentence
But then there are those verbs that refuse to be lumped into a category: the irregulars. Estar is an irregular -ar verb; it doesn’t follow most normal ending patterns, so your best bet is to just memorize its conjugation. Other popular irregular Spanish verbs include: ser, tener, venir and ir.

Present tense conjugation

Here's estar in the present tense; note that four of the forms have required accent marks:
The Present Tense of Estar
Conjugation Translation
yo estoy I am
tú estás You (informal) are
él/ella/ello/uno está He/she/one is
usted está You (formal) are
nosotros estamos We are
vosotros estáis You all (informal) are
ellos/ellas están They are
ustedes están You all (formal) are
The following examples show you estar in action:

  • Nosotros estamos en el cine. (We are at the cinema.)

  • Ella está triste. (She is sad.)

Preterit tense conjugation

In the preterit, estar has an irregular stem: estuv-. Notice also that it doesn’t have the accent marks regular verbs use in the preterit. Take a look:
The Preterit Tense of Estar
Conjugation Translation
yo estuve I was
tú estuviste You (informal) were
él/ella/ello/uno estuvo He/she/one was
usted estuvo You (formal) were
nosotros estuvimos We were
vosotros estuvisteis You all (informal) were
ellos/ellas estuvieron They were
ustedes estuvieron You all (formal) were
You use the preterit tense like this:

  • ¿Estuviste en tu casa ayer? (Were you at home yesterday?)

  • Si. Estuve en casa todo el día. (Yes. I was home all day long.)

Imperfect tense conjugation

You’re off the hook in the imperfect and future forms; estar conjugates normally in these tenses. Check out the following tables and examples.
The Imperfect Tense of Estar
Conjugation Translation
yo estaba I used to be
tú estabas You (informal) used to be
él/ella/ello/uno estaba He/she/one used to be
usted estaba You (formal) used to be
nosotros estábamos We used to be
vosotros estabais You all (informal) used to be
ellos/ellas estaban They used to be
ustedes estaban You all (formal) used to be
Here are some examples of the imperfect tense:

  • ¿Estaban ustedes acostumbrados a leer? (Were you used to reading?)

  • Si. Estábamos acostumbrados a leer. (Yes. We were used to reading.)

Future tense conjugation

The Future Tense of Estar
Conjugation Translation
yo estaré I will be
tú estarás You (informal) will be
él/ella/ello/uno estará He/she/one will be
usted estará You (formal) will be
nosotros estaremos We will be
vosotros estaréis You all (informal) will be
ellos/ellas estarán They will be
ustedes estarán You all (formal) will be
The following samples put the future tense to work:

  • ¿Estarás listo para salir? (Will you be ready to go out?)

  • Sí. Estaré listo para salir. (Yes. I will be ready to go out.)

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