State words
What state is someone or something in now?
Meaning
We can describe the condition someone or something is in at a particular moment. This may be a temporary condition or one left by an earlier event. Languages use adjectives, verbs, or phrases, and some have no special word forms for states. Unlike Qualities, State words draws attention to the condition at that moment rather than a general feature.
How to spot it
Look for words or phrases that describe someone's or something's condition at that moment, rather than what they are generally like.
In your native language
English often uses adjectives after be, feel, or seem to describe a state. Forms such as closed and broken can describe a condition left by an earlier action. In full statements using be, its present-tense form cannot be left out.
I'm tired.
Tired describes how the speaker feels; 'm is the shortened form of am.
The window is closed.
This describes the window's state, not who closed it.
Are you ready?
Ready describes the listener's current state.
In your learning language
Spanish often uses estar with an adjective to describe a current condition or a state left by an earlier event. The adjective matches the subject's masculine or feminine form and singular or plural form. The choice between ser and estar is not simply permanent versus temporary: with some adjectives, the verb changes the meaning.
Después del viaje, Elena está cansada.
Elena is tired after the trip.
Estar presents Elena's current condition, and cansada matches Elena.
La puerta está cerrada.
The door is closed.
The sentence describes the door's state, not the action of closing it.
Los plátanos están verdes todavía.
The bananas are still unripe.
With estar, verdes describes the bananas as not yet ripe.
Learners whose language has one linking verb, or no linking verb in present descriptions, may omit estar or replace it with ser. Learners may also choose by how long a state lasts, although duration alone does not determine the verb.