Breakdown of El medicamento está en la mesa.
en
in
estar
to be
la mesa
the table
el medicamento
the medication
Questions & Answers about El medicamento está en la mesa.
Why does the sentence use está instead of es?
Because this sentence is talking about location: where the medicine is.
In Spanish, estar is normally used for location:
- El medicamento está en la mesa. = The medicine is on the table.
By contrast, ser is used for identity, description, origin, and other more permanent-type information:
- Es un medicamento. = It is a medicine.
- Es importante. = It is important.
So está is the correct choice because the sentence is saying where the medicine is.
Why is there an accent mark in está?
The accent mark shows where the stress goes: es-TÁ.
It also helps distinguish this form from esta, which can mean this:
- esta mesa = this table
- está = is
So the accent is important for both pronunciation and meaning.
Why is it El medicamento and not just medicamento?