What You Are vs. What You Are Being
You just met estar para for moods and readiness. Its sibling estar de + noun answers a different question: not what are you? but what are you doing at the moment? — a job you are filling in for, a trip you are on, a state you are passing through.
Working As
With an occupation, estar de says someone is working as something right now — with no claim that it is their profession:
| My brother is working as a waiter in a small restaurant. | Mi hermano está de mesero en un restaurante pequeño. |
| This month, he is filling in as a teacher at the school. | Este mes, él está de maestro en la escuela. |
Note there is no article after de: está de mesero, never está de un mesero.
Away and Off
The same frame covers temporary situations — vacations, trips, moods:
| She is on vacation this week. | Ella está de vacaciones esta semana. |
| My father is away on a trip for work. | Mi padre está de viaje por el trabajo. |
| My parents are on vacation at the beach. | Mis padres están de vacaciones en la playa. |
| Why are you in a bad mood? | ¿Por qué estás de mal humor? |
Ser vs. Estar de
Ser + profession states what someone is; estar de states what they are temporarily doing. Spanish happily puts both in one sentence:
| He is a teacher, but this year he is working as a waiter. | Él es maestro, pero este año está de mesero. |
| claim | verb | example |
|---|---|---|
| identity / profession | ser | Es maestro. |
| temporary role or state | estar de | Está de mesero. |
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