estar

From Latin stāre (“stand”), from PIE *steh₂-.

• IPA^(key): /esˈta(ɾ)/
• Syllabification: es‧tar
• Rhymes: -a(ɾ)

estar

1. to be

Contrary to other Iberian languages, Aragonese only makes use of one verb "to be", this means that the verb "ser" is not present.

Inherited from Latin stāre (“to stand”). Where the velar infix, which is characteristic chiefly for the second conjugation, comes from is unknown.

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [əsˈta]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [esˈtaɾ]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -a(ɾ)

estar (first-person singular present estic, first-person singular preterite estiguí, past participle estat)

1. (transitive, copulative) to be; to currently be in a state or have a characteristic (Used to connect a noun to an adjective that describes a temporary state of being.)

   Estic cansada. ― I am tired.

2. (auxiliary) forms the continuous aspect, together with a present participle

   Ja està dormint. ― He is already sleeping.

3. (intransitive, +adverbial phrase) to stay, to live or spending time.

   M’estic a una petita pensió vora el mar. ― I am in a small boarding house on the seashore.

• This is one of two verbs that can be translated as to be, the other being ser/ésser. Ser/ésser indicates something that is inherent and not expected to change or localization, whereas estar describes temporary qualities that apply only at a particular time. Ser/ésser relates to estar as essence relates to state, etymologically as well as semantically.

• benestar
• estada
• estament
• estança
• malestar

• estadant
• estar-se
• estaria

• “estar”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “estar”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025
• “estar” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “estar” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

From Old Galician-Portuguese estar, from Latin stāre (“stand”).

• IPA^(key): /esˈtaɾ/ [es̺ˈt̪aɾ]
• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Hyphenation: es‧tar

estar (first-person singular present estou, first-person singular preterite estiven, past participle estado)
estar (first-person singular present estou, first-person singular preterite estivem or estive, past participle estado, reintegrationist norm)

1. to be
2. (copulative) to be (denotes a transient quality; a quality expected to change) [with adjective]
3. (auxiliary) to be; forms the progressive aspect [with gerund or a (+ infinitive)]
4. (intransitive) to cost (to be worth a certain amount of money), especially of something whose price changes often [with a ‘price’]

   Os ovos están a 2€ a ducia ― Eggs cost 2€ a dozen.

5. (intransitive) to be about to; indicates imminence or [with para (+ infinitive)]
   • 1861, José Sánchez de Santa María, transl., Gospel of Matthew:

     Pois así tamén, cando vosoutros víredes todas estas cousas, tede por certo que xa o Fillo do home está para chegar, e que xa está á porta

     Even so you also, when you see all these things, know that the Son of Man is about to arrive, even at the doors.

6. to stand

Like Portuguese and Spanish, Galician has two different verbs that are usually translated to English as “to be”. The verb ser relates to essence, origin, or physical description. In contrast, the verb estar relates to current state or position.

• ser

• “estar”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, 2012–2025

From Latin stāre (“stand”).

estar

1. to be, be present

From Latin stāre (“stand”), from Proto-Indo-European *steh₂-.

• IPA^(key): /es.ˈtaɾ/, /ˈstaɾ/
• Rhymes: -aɾ

estar

1. to be

• Galician: estar
• Portuguese: estar

• IPA^(key): /ˈestar/

·estar

1. third-person singular present subjunctive conjunct of ithid

• tar (colloquial)

From Old Galician-Portuguese estar, from Latin stāre (“stand”), from Proto-Indo-European *steh₂-. The stems estev- or estiv- found in some inflections likely come from Vulgar Latin *stēvī (perfect in -ēv-, used by some Latin second conjugation verbs), hypothetical perfect stem that displaced original Classical Latin perfect stetī. Compare the same development in Spanish estar. The present subjunctive stem estej- is by analogy with ser, sej- (which is from Latin sedēre).

• Audio (Brazil, Rio de Janeiro); /iʃˈtah/:

  (file)

• Homophone: está (Brazil)
• Hyphenation: es‧tar

estar (first-person singular present estou, first-person singular preterite estive, past participle estado)

2. (intransitive) to be (indicates location in space) [with em ‘location’ or another locational preposition or adverb]

   Onde estás? ― Where are you?

   Estou em casa. ― I am at home.

4. (copulative) to be (denotes a transient quality; a quality expected to change) [with adjective]

   O tempo estava frio. ― The weather was cold (at that moment).

   Estás louco? ― Are you crazy (right now)?

   A maçã está madura. ― The apple is ripe.

6. (auxiliary) to be; forms the progressive aspect [with gerund (Brazil) or a (+ infinitive) (Portugal)]

   Ela está cantando? / Ela está a cantar? ― Is she singing?

   Estavam trabalhando muito. ― They were working a lot.

   Estávamos a ler muito. ― We had been reading a lot.

   Estaremos a ler livros. ― We will be reading books.

8. (intransitive) to cost (to be worth a certain amount of money), especially of something whose price changes often [with a ‘price’]

   Synonym: custar

   O quilo de maçã está a dois euros.

   A kilogram of apples costs two euros.

10. (copulative) to look, to appear (to give an appearance of being) [with adjective]

    Você está bonita.

    You look pretty.

11. to stand

    Aqui estou.

    Here I stand.

• See ser.
• For most speakers the first syllable (es-) is usually omitted in colloquial language and the full pronunciation is somewhat formal.

For quotations using this term, see Citations:estar.

• estábulo

• ser
• ter
• haver

• tar (Latin America, nonstandard)

Inherited from Old Spanish estar, inherited from Latin stāre (“stand”), from Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- (compare English stand). The preterite's origin is unclear, most likely generalized from the preterite of haber (“to have”), hub- (note that b and v are pronounced identically; compare the same development in andar and tener). Compare the same development in Portuguese estar. Cognate with English state.

• IPA^(key): /esˈtaɾ/ [esˈt̪aɾ]

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Syllabification: es‧tar

estar (first-person singular present estoy, first-person singular preterite estuve, past participle estado)

1. (intransitive) to be (have a temporary or permanent location in space)

   ¿Dónde estás?

   Where are you?

   Estoy en casa.

   I am at home.

2. (intransitive) to be (denotes a copula, in a transient fashion)

   El tiempo estaba frío/caliente.

   The weather was cold/hot [back then].

   ¿Estás feliz?

   Are you happy [right now]?

3. to be (auxiliary verb for the progressive/continuous aspect, preceding the gerund of the verb)

   Ella está cantando.

   She is singing.

4. (intransitive) to be in a state (in a passive voice sense)

   Los vasos están rotos.

   The glasses are broken. (In passive voice with estar, unlike haber, its past participle agrees with number and gender of the subject)

   Llegaron y vieron que el hotel estaba abandonado.

   They arrived and saw the hotel was abandoned.

5. (reflexive, followed by adjective) to be, stay (denotes a copula, in a transient fashion)

   Estense callados y quietos.

   Stay quiet and not moving.

6. (intransitive) to be (still) [with por (+ infinitive) ‘to be done’]

   Esto todavía está por hacer.

   This is still to be done.

   Lo peor está por llegar.

   The worst part is yet to come.

7. (intransitive) to be in a long-term state (in specific idioms)

   estar muerto/a ― to be dead

   estar casado/a ― to be married (can also be ser casado)

   estar chico/a ― to be short (colloquially)

• See ser. Contrast also with quedar. The word está as an imperative is rarely used.

Despite having a vowel in the root, estar's conjugation matches dar in the present indicative and present subjunctive tenses, with none of the forms in those tenses being stressed on the root.

• → Bikol Central: istar
• → Hiligaynon: istar

• ser

• “estar”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 10 December 2024
• “estar”, in Diccionario de americanismos [Dictionary of Americanisms] (in Spanish), Association of Academies of the Spanish Language [Spanish: Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española], 2010