

The connotation in Spanish is that perhaps my niece was short before her growth spurt and I just now noticed how tall she is.

(My friend with his gym subscription is buff.)

You might be strong, loyal, intelligent or beautiful. The second clause - de como soy (of how I am) - is perhaps best translated as “of who I am” or “of what I am like.” We’re talking about the fundamental characteristic traits that make up your person. While you may be proud of yourself at all times (we hope so!), in Spanish it is considered a momentary emotion and not a permanent attribute. (I’m very proud of how I am/what I am like). Need a simple way to highlight the difference? This sentence will always help you remember which version to use: (I’m chubby after Thanksgiving.) Estoy enferma. (I’m tired.) Estoy gordita después de Thanksgiving. (I’m currently in Barcelona.)Įstoy cansada. But I’m from a small village where there aren’t many LGBTQ+ people).Įstoy en Barcelona. (I am a woman, I’m gay, and I’m an engineer. Pero, soy de un pueblo chico donde no hay mucha gente LGBTQ+. You’ll often use soy to introduce yourself or talk about your life and background. Including both physical (short, brunette, strong) and personality (fun, loud, chatty) characteristicsĭoctor, farmer, teacher, writer, factory worker, etc. The country where you are from, or your heritage Soy helps us express things about ourselves, such as: Identity Let’s dig a little deeper into when to use soy vs.

Most native Spanish speakers will understand what you mean regardless, but using the wrong verb tends to sound unnatural at best. This example should clarify the difference in meaning between soy vs. We cannot say “ Soy embarazada.” This doesn’t make sense in any Spanish-speaking country. It’s not a permanent part of your personality and it doesn’t last forever (thank goodness for that!). Soy expresses stable or permanent qualities of a person, place or thing, while estoy expresses temporary states or conditions.Ī good example of a temporary state is pregnancy. The main difference between soy and estoy is fairly straightforward.
#Yo soy tico meaning full#
Here are the other present-tense forms: SubjectĪ full phrase includes the subject yo (I) but is often omitted in Spanish, like this: Estoy is the first-person present form of the verb estar (to be). Soy is the first-person present form of the verb ser (to be). Let’s back up a bit and remember our basic conjugations.
