help please: Tener vs. Estar
How can I tell when to use tener vs. estar right off the top of my head?
Let me give you some context--- I know to use "tengo medio" for "I have fear/ I am afraid", "Tengo hambre" for "I have hunger/ I am hungry" and "Tiene 100 años" for "She has 100 years/ She is 100". But why? Why can't it be "Está 100 años" or something like that.... If I were to learn a new word, how would I know which one to use?
8 Answers
Welcome to the world of studying a 2nd (or 3rd, or, whatever) language. Part of what makes different languages different is that they have different ways of expressing things. Going from one language to another is not, simply, a matter of substituting words. All languages have "idioms" / "idiomatic expressions". By this is meant expressions that have no "obvious" logic (they're said that way because "that's the way they're said"). Your apparent assumption that Spanish should be just like English (but with "funny" pronunciation") is flawed.
There are some similarities (because they share some common influences) but, basically, they are different languages. Were you to study some non-Indo-European language, you would find even more differences.
If you go to a Chinese/Japanese/etc. restaurant and try to eat with chopsticks, you cannot use them as simple substitutes for a knife and fork. They require a different approach to eating. Take one chopstick and think "this is my fork" and the other and think "this is my knife" and you will have serious problems. Chopsticks are not "translations" of "knife and fork". They are different ways of approaching the same problem.
These are just phrases that you will have to be able to recognize and memorize. There is no obvious or reliable reason as to why English uses "to be" when Spanish uses "to have." However, you could make the argument that formal or old English uses "to have" in these situations and the current use of "to be" is an example of evolution of a language. The example that always comes to mind for me is the English phrase, "have no fear."
Constant exposure to natives expressing themselves (through books, movies, real live conversations, etc.). Also, having them chuckle or fail to understand you when you make mistakes (if you are lucky enough to have natives to converse with).
This is why it is hard to understand people speaking very broken English. Not only do they have an accent, but also, they often put the words in an order natural to their own language. For you to say "estoy 10 años" would be similar to a Mexican saying "I no can see it."
You just have to learn which one to use. As for not using estar, that's just the way the language is. You will just have to memorize when to use estar and when to use tener.
There are only a handful of common expressions that change to "to have" in Spanish and I agree with Hithere that you just have to learn them. There's a great list at http://spanish.speak7.com/spanish_ser_estar_tener_hay.htm
Helps me! Thanks!
As a native American English speaker, I too had difficulties with these concepts when starting to learn Spanish. But if you think about it, the way they are said in Spanish makes more sense. Examples:
I am hungry. Are you? What is a hungry? You have the sense feeling hunger. Tengo hambre.
I am cold. Are you? What is a cold? You have the sense of feeling cold. Tengo frio.
So think about what it is you have. You have the sense or feeling of being hungry, cold, hot, tired, etc.
For age....
I am 53 years old. What I have is 53 years of life. Tengo 53 años.
In America we don't celebrate your birthday. Actually, we celebrate your birthDATE. You can only have one birthDATE. In spanish, they celebrate you completing another year of life (Feliz Cumpleaños).
Maybe not a true gramatical explanation but perhaps a pragmatic point of view. Hope this helps you.
Also, the language affects view...or vice-versa. English views age as something you ARE. Spanish views it as something you HAVE. English views the day as BEING hot, whereas Spanish views the day as MAKING heat. Not that that helps you know when to use the correct wording.
