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Does 'estuve bueno' and'fue bueno' mean the same thing? When are ser and estar interchangable?

Category: Ser vs Estar

Grammar Genius,

I have heard Spanish speakers say both 'estuvo bonito' and 'fue bonito' to describe an experience or day. Are they both correct? If so, could you give other examples of when ser and estar are interchangable?

Ser and estar may be used interchangeably with the following words:

EXAMPLE RULE
¿estás / es casado? 'Are you married?' Words that refer to maritial status can take ser or estar: viudo, soltero, divorciado
Estuvo/fue muy grosera conmigo. She was very rude to me.

When 'to be' = 'to behave'

NOTE: careful with the construction ser/estar bueno. While ha sido bueno hoy means he behaved well today, estar bueno means 'tasty' and in Spain, sexually attractive.

Also, if you are describing a behavior that is an inherent characteristic, you must use ser: Los latinos son machistas. Latin men are machista.

El concierto fue/estuvo muy divertido. 'The concert was very fun.' Ser or estar may be used to describe events
El día es/ está bueno. The weather is nice today. Adjectives that describe the weather when applied to día and tiempo.
El es/ está calvo. He is bald. calvo, gordo, delgado may take either ser or estar. But, when there has been a change of state, estar must be used.

Fill in the blanks and click on ¨ANSWERS¨ at the bottom of the table to check your answers:

Sale con una mujer que _____ divorciada. (S)he's going out with a women who's divorced.
(él) Siempre ha _____gordo, pero ahora _____ más gordo que nunca. He's always been fat, but now he is fatter than ever.
(él)_______ muy grosero consigo. He was very rude to you.
La fiesta _____muy divertida. The party was very fun.
El tiempo _____muy agradable. The weather is very pleasant.

ANSWERS

Ser must be used when describing a fixed price or quanitity:

¿Cuánto son las uvas? How much are the grapes?

But, either ser or estar may be used for fluctuating prices:

¿A cuánto esta el dólar? What is the dolar at?
¿A cómo estan / son las uvas? How much are the grapes?

Using either ser or estar can change the meaning of certain adjectives. For example:

ser vivo sharp/alert
estar vivo alive
ser negro black
estar negro very irritated
ser malo bad
estar malo sick, ill

Ser Bueno or Estar Bueno?

Generally, estar bueno is common to describe a food, joke, or story as good or appealing.

When describing a person or a behavior, ser bueno should be used. ¨Estar bueno¨ means ´tasty´ or appetising´ and therefore sexually appealing (especially in Spain). The exception to this is: ¡hoy has estado bueno! ´you have been good today!´ (to be ironic):

hoy has sido bueno you have behaved well today
Soy muy bueno al fútbol. I am very good at soccer. (because it's a skill)
Este año estoy muy bueno al fútbol, pero el año que viene estaré ridículamente bueno. This year I am very good at soccer, but the following year I am going to be ridiculously good. (the ´skill´ of being good at soccer is temporary--it changes from year to year.)
El doctor dice que las manzanas son buenas para la salud. The doctor says that apples are good for your health.
Esta manzana esta buena. This apple is good (i.e. tasty)

 



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