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Ela é sempre bonita, mas hoje está cansada.

Ela é sempre bonita, mas hoje está cansada.
She is always beautiful, but today she is tired.
From Lesson 9:Contrasting the two verbs to be (ser vs. estar)·Portuguese (Portugal)

Questions & Answers about Ela é sempre bonita, mas hoje está cansada.

Why do we use é for being beautiful, but está for being tired?
This sentence perfectly shows the difference between the two Portuguese verbs for "to be". We use é (from the verb ser) for permanent traits or characteristics, like her natural beauty. We use está (from the verb estar) for temporary states or conditions, like feeling tired hoje (today).
Could I say "ela está bonita" instead of "ela é bonita"?
Yes, but it changes the meaning! If you say ela é bonita, you are saying she is a naturally beautiful person. If you say ela está bonita, you mean she looks beautiful right now (maybe she dressed up nicely for an event). In this sentence, the word sempre (always) pairs perfectly with the permanent é.
Why do both bonita and cansada end in "-a"?
Because they are describing a female subject (Ela). In Portuguese, describing words (adjectives) must match the gender of the person they describe. If we were talking about a man (Ele), we would change the endings to "-o" and say he is bonito and cansado.
Why don't we need to say "ela está cansada" in the second half of the sentence?
In Portuguese, you can drop the subject pronoun (like ela) if it's already obvious who you are talking about. Since we started the sentence with Ela, we don't need to repeat it after mas (but). The conversation flows more naturally without it.

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