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Los estudiantes están de pie.

Los estudiantes están de pie.
The students are standing.
From Lesson 90:Complex prepositions of place (encima de, debajo de...)·Spanish (Latin America)

Breakdown of Los estudiantes están de pie.

el estudiante
the student
estar de pie
to be standing

Questions & Answers about Los estudiantes están de pie.

Why does de pie mean "standing" when pie means "foot"?
You are right that pie means "foot"! In Spanish, the fixed expression de pie literally translates to "of foot," but it is the standard way to describe the state of "standing up."
Since there are multiple students, shouldn't it be pluralized to de pies?
No, because de pie is a fixed phrase. It never changes to match the number or gender of the people. Whether it is one person or a whole class, they are always just de pie.
Why do we use están instead of son here?
We use están (from estar) because standing is a temporary physical state or posture. Remember that ser is used for permanent characteristics, while estar is used for temporary conditions, locations, and postures.
Why don't we use a verb ending in -ando or -iendo for "are standing"?
English uses an active, continuous verb ("are standing") for this posture, but Spanish treats it as a state of being. You simply use the verb estar followed by the phrase de pie.

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