Which is correct? Yo soy un estudiante or soy estudiante?
I guess that both are correct, but I am not exactly sure..
7 Answers
No, it isn't a matter of preference. If you want to say "I am a student" you have to say: "Soy estudiante". Saying "Soy un estudiante" is like a neon sign flashing that you are not fluent in Spanish. When you add certain adjectives or clauses to "student", then you need to include the indefinite article:
"Soy estudiante"
"Soy estudiante de arquitectura"
"Soy estudiante desde hace muchos años"
"Soy un buen estudiante"
"Soy un estudiante al que le gusta esforzarse mucho"
Just to mention the other possibility in case you see it without the indefinite article and wonder why....
When refering to a person's profession, the indefinite is not used in Spanish, although it is used in English.
- Soy profesor - I am a teacher.
- Ana quiere ser médica - Ana wants to be a doctor.
So does thief count as a profession?
Es ladrón.
Es un mentiroso ladrón.
About the word 'thief' in Spanish, that one is interesting.
Just like in English, "ladrón" can be used either as a "profession", or as a derogatory name for people who enjoying ripping you off, setting abusive prices for their goods, etc.. In the former, you could say it either way, "es un ladrón" or "es ladrón", although "es ladrón" is more correct. In the latter, you would use "es un ladrón". If you say "es ladrón" to refer to an unethical shop owner, you would sound fairly uneducated.
they both mean the same. "soy estudiante" is mostly informal and used in conversation.
Quentin is right, as usual
No article, soy estudiante, and of course, NO subject pronouns in Spanish
I'd just say 'soy estudiante'. I guess its a matter of preference as both mean the same thing.
