The verb ser (to be) is one of the first verbs every Portuguese learner needs -- and one of the most irregular. None of its present-tense forms follow a regular pattern, so every form must be memorized individually. The good news is that you will use ser so frequently that the forms become second nature very quickly.
Conjugation
| Person | Form | English |
|---|---|---|
| eu | sou | I am |
| tu | és | you are |
| ele / ela / você | é | he/she is; you are |
| nós | somos | we are |
| (vós) | (sois) | (you all are) |
| eles / elas / vocês | são | they are; you all are |
The vós form sois survives in prayers and older texts but is not used in daily European Portuguese. Modern EP uses vocês with the third person plural form são.
Core uses of ser in the present
Portuguese splits the English verb "to be" into ser and estar (and sometimes ficar). Ser covers identity, essence, and characteristics that define someone or something. Here are the main categories.
Identity and profession
Use ser to say who someone is, what they do for a living, or what something is.
Eu sou o João.
I'm João.
Ela é professora numa escola primária.
She's a primary school teacher.
Origin and nationality
Where someone comes from or what nationality they hold is expressed with ser.
Sou português.
I'm Portuguese.
Somos de Lisboa.
We're from Lisbon.
Inherent characteristics and traits
Use ser for qualities that define a person or thing by nature.
Ele é alto e inteligente.
He's tall and intelligent.
Material and composition
What something is made of takes ser + de.
A mesa é de madeira.
The table is made of wood.
Possession
To state who something belongs to, use ser + de (which contracts with articles: de + o = do, de + a = da).
Este livro é do Pedro.
This book is Pedro's.
Time and dates
Telling the time and stating dates always use ser. Note that the verb agrees with the number of hours: é for one o'clock, são for all other hours.
| Portuguese | English |
|---|---|
| É uma hora. | It's one o'clock. |
| São três horas. | It's three o'clock. |
| Hoje é segunda-feira. | Today is Monday. |
| São vinte e cinco de abril. | It's the 25th of April. |
Que horas são? -- São dez e meia.
What time is it? -- It's half past ten.
Event location
While estar marks where something physically sits, ser marks where an event takes place.
A reunião é no escritório.
The meeting is at the office.
Ser vs estar -- a first look
Portuguese learners quickly discover that choosing between ser and estar is one of the language's central challenges. The full comparison has its own section, but here is a quick preview with contrastive pairs that show the difference.
| Ser (essence / defining trait) | Estar (current state / condition) |
|---|---|
| Ele é magro. (He's thin -- by build.) | Ele está magro. (He's thin -- he's lost weight.) |
| Ela é bonita. (She's beautiful -- characteristically.) | Ela está bonita. (She looks beautiful -- today.) |
| O café é frio. (The coffee is a cold drink -- iced coffee.) | O café está frio. (The coffee is cold -- it has cooled down.) |
The rule of thumb: ser tells you what something is; estar tells you how something is right now. For identity, origin, profession, material, time, and defining traits, ser is almost always correct. See Ser vs Estar with Adjectives for a deeper exploration.
Ser in fixed expressions
Several everyday expressions are built around ser. These are worth memorizing as set phrases:
- É verdade -- it's true
- É preciso -- it's necessary
- É possível -- it's possible
- É claro -- of course / it's clear
- É pena -- it's a pity
- Seja como for -- be that as it may
É claro que podes vir connosco.
Of course you can come with us.
Pronunciation in European Portuguese
European Portuguese reduces unstressed vowels heavily, but the forms of ser are short enough that each one has a distinct sound:
- Sou -- /sow/, rhymes roughly with English "so." The vowel is a closed o.
- És -- /ɛʃ/, with an open e and the characteristic EP final "sh" sound.
- É -- /ɛ/, a short open e. This is one of the most common sounds in Portuguese.
- Somos -- /ˈsomuʃ/, with a closed o and the final -os reduced to /uʃ/.
- São -- /sɐ̃w̃/, a nasal diphthong. The ã is nasal and the o glides into a nasal w. This is also the word for the name "Saint" -- São Paulo, São Jorge.
Common mistakes
1. Using estar for identity. Saying Estou o João or Ela está professora is incorrect. Identity and profession require ser: Sou o João, Ela é professora.
2. Forgetting that time uses ser. The question Que horas são? and answers like São cinco horas always use ser, never estar. There is no situation in Portuguese where you say estão três horas.
3. Using é for plural subjects. When the subject is plural, the verb must be são: Eles são estudantes (They are students), not Eles é estudantes. The same applies when telling time with hours other than one: São duas horas, not É duas horas.
4. Omitting the article with names. In European Portuguese, it is natural to include the definite article before a person's name: Eu sou *o João, Ela é **a Maria*. Dropping the article sounds unnatural in EP, even though Brazilian Portuguese sometimes omits it.
Related Topics
- Present Indicative OverviewA1 — Uses and formation of the present tense in Portuguese
- Present Indicative of EstarA1 — The verb estar in the present tense
- Ser, Estar, Ficar: Three Verbs for 'To Be'A1 — European Portuguese splits the English verb 'to be' into three: ser for identity and essence, estar for current states and location, and ficar for becoming and fixed location. This page gives the high-level map.
- Ser for Identity and ClassificationA1 — Ser is the verb of what something is — the essential identity, category, and defining characteristics. This page maps every major use of ser in European Portuguese.
- Ser for Time, Dates, and EventsA1 — Using ser to tell time, state dates, and locate events — with the crucial distinction between event location (ser) and physical location (estar).