How to say "This girl is" the correct way?

Question

So today in my spanish class, I picked up a paper on the floor and one sentence said "La chica esta en la biblioteca," which translates to 'This girl is in the library.'

But when I went to google translate and typed in " Esta chica es" it translated to "This girl is".

Which way is the proper way of saying "This girl is"?

Welcome to SpanishDict. Please complete your profile information regarding language. - rac1, Aug 29, 2014

Answer 1

Thanks. I'm still curious though, is it an error to say something like " Está chica es hablando en la biblioteca?

Yes.

Esta (this) chica está (is) hablando en la biblioteca.

Estas (these) chicas están (are) hablando en la biblioteca.

Esas (those) chicas están (are) hablando en la biblioteca.

Answer 2

La chica = the girl

La chica está en la biblioteca. = The girl is in the library.

Esta chica = this girl

Esta chica está en la biblioteca. = This girl is in the library.

Don't forget the accent on "está"... it's the difference between "this" (esta) and "is" (está). And they are pronounced differently, too.

Thanks. I'm still curious though, is it an error to say something like " Está chica *es* hablando en la biblioteca?"? - unbelievable, Aug 29, 2014

Well you were typing a lot more than I did. No wonder I finished first even though I con;t type very fast. - gringojrf, Aug 29, 2014

Answer 3

La chica está ..... = The girl is ....

Esta chica está .... = This girl is .....

Typing at the same time... :) - Tosh, Aug 29, 2014

Answer 4

Just to add something that hasn't been covered here. There are two verbs in Spanish that translate to the English "to be", or in your example, "is". Ser and estar are used to describe different states of "being". Estar is used to describe position or transient circumstances, so in your example, the girl is in the library, estar would be used, "La chica está en la biblioteca". If you are talking about an intrinsic characteristic, then ser would be used, as in "La chica es alta", the girl is tall.