In this presentation I show the two expressions used in Spanish to say "I am". Soy, to be used in situations or ways of being more permanently; and Estoy, to be used in situations that are more temporary.

1. How to say “I am” in Spanish
Soy
Estoy

2. • After finding out that even when “tengo sed”
means “I’m thirsty”, “tengo” doesn’t mean “I
am”, now the next question would be:
• Then, how do you say “I am” in Spanish?

3. • After finding out that even when “tengo sed”
means “I’m thirsty”, “tengo” doesn’t mean “I
am”, now the next question would be:
• Then, how do you say “I am” in Spanish?
• This is when things get a little more
complicated, because there are two ways of
saying “I am” in Spanish:

4. • After finding out that even when “tengo sed”
means “I’m thirsty”, “tengo” doesn’t mean “I
am”, now the next question would be:
• Then, how do you say “I am” in Spanish?
• This is when things get a little more
complicated, because there are two ways of
saying “I am” in Spanish:
– When I am something, or someone in a more
permanent way, or
– When I am something in a temporary way.

5. “I am” in a more permanent way:
Things that are not going to change easily.
un hombre, soy una mujer.
– I am a man, I am a woman.

6. “I am” in a more permanent way:
Things that are not going to change easily.
un niño, soy una niña.
– I am a boy, I am a girl.

7. “I am” in a more permanent way:
Things that are not going to change easily.
inteligente.
– I am intelligent.

8. “I am” in a more permanent way:
Things that are not going to change easily.
guapo.
– I am handsome.

9. “I am” in a more permanent way:
Things that are not going to change easily.
bonita.
– I am pretty.

10. “I am” in a more permanent way:
Things that are not going to change easily.
estudioso(a) y trabajador(a).
– I am studious (hard studying) and hard working.

11. “I am” in a more permanent way:
Things that are not going to change easily.
un héroe, soy una heroína.
– I am a hero, I am a heroine.

12. “I am” in a more permanent way:
Things that are not going to change easily.
humilde y modesto(a).
– I am humble and unpretentious.

13. “I am” in a more permanent way:
Things that are not going to change easily.
un hombre, soy una mujer.
un niño, soy una niña.
inteligente.
guapo.
bonita.
estudioso(a) y trabajador(a).
un héroe, soy una heroína.
humilde y modesto(a).

14. “I am” in a more temporary way:
Things that could change easily.
enojado
– I am angry, mad, upset.

15. “I am” in a more temporary way:
Things that could change easily.
contenta
– I am happy.

16. “I am” in a more temporary way:
Things that could change easily.
triste
– I am sad.

17. “I am” in a more temporary way:
Things that could change easily.
enfermo
– I am sick.

18. “I am” in a more temporary way:
Things that could change easily.
en la escuela
– I am at the school.

19. “I am” in a more temporary way:
Things that could change easily.
en la tienda
– I am at the store.

20. “I am” in a more temporary way:
Things that could change easily.
hambriento, sediento, muerto de frío,
muerto de miedo
– I am hungry, thirsty, cold to death, scared to death.

21. “I am” in a more temporary way:
Things that could change easily.
de prisa
– I am in a hurry.

22. “I am” in a more temporary way:
Things that could change easily.
enojado
contenta
triste
enfermo
en la escuela
en la tienda
hambriento, sediento, muerto de frío,
muerto de miedo
de prisa

23. Estoy hambriento, estoy sediento.
• Yes, here you can see that there is a way to
use the verb “to be” to say I am hungry.
Notice that when you say in Spanish “estoy
hambriento” it’s a little more dramatic
(melodramatic). The most common way is to
say “tengo hambre”.
• The same applies to “estoy sediento” and
“tengo sed”.

24. I am in a hurry.
• “Tengo prisa”, “estoy de prisa”, “llevo prisa”,
“estoy apurado”, “ando apurado” are different
ways to say “I am in a hurry”.
• You don’t have to learn all those at this time.
• This notice is for you to be able to know what
they are saying when you hear someone using
those expressions.

25. Estoy muerto = I am dead.
• Notice that we are using the temporary form
of “to be” (estoy) with the expression “estoy
muerto”. Of course when you are dead, that’s
not a temporary situation, right?
• This is a way to emphasize the situation, like in
English: thirsty to death, scared to death, and
so on.
• You can use the same expression with
laughing to death (“estar muerto de risa”).