El postre está en la mesa.

to be

Breakdown of El postre está en la mesa.

• en: on
• la mesa: the table
• el postre: the dessert

Questions & Answers about El postre está en la mesa.

Why do we use está instead of es in this sentence?

In Spanish, está (a form of estar) is used to indicate a temporary state or location. Since the dessert is located on the table, we use está to express that placement. If we used es (a form of ser), it would imply an essential characteristic rather than a location.

Why is the definite article El used before postre?

In Spanish, nouns almost always need an article to indicate specificity. El is the masculine singular definite article. Since postre (dessert) is a masculine noun, we use El postre to refer to the specific dessert rather than just a dessert.

Is postre a masculine or feminine noun?

Postre is a masculine noun in Spanish. Generally, words ending in -e can be masculine or feminine depending on the word, and in this case, postre is masculine.

What does en mean here?

En generally translates to in, on, or at, depending on context. In this sentence, en means on the table—indicating the dessert’s location.

Why do we say la mesa instead of el mesa?

Mesa (table) is a feminine noun in Spanish, so it takes the feminine article la. Whenever you use a feminine noun (usually ending in -a), you pair it with la in the singular form.