Greetings
Tú vs. usted
Tú and usted both mean you. So what's the difference?
Tú is used in friendly conversations.
Juan, ¿cómo estás tú?
Juan, how are you?
Meanwhile, usted is used in more formal interactions.
Hola, señor. ¿Cómo está usted?
Hello, sir. How are you?
¿Cómo te llamas?
¿Cómo te llamas? is used to ask What's your name? in informal interactions.
Hola, ¿cómo te llamas?
Hello, what's your name?
Me llamo Omar.
My name is Omar.
Remember to use usted in more formal settings or when speaking to someone older than you.
Hola, señor. ¿Cómo se llama usted?
Hello, sir. What's your name?
Ser vs. estar
Remember to use estar to describe things that are only temporarily true, like the location of people and things.
Manuel está aquí.
Manuel is here.
You would also use estoy, estás, or está to talk about how people are feeling or doing.
¡Yo estoy cansada!
I am tired!
Use ser for more permanent descriptions, like explaining what someone is like.
Mi hermano es inteligente.
My brother is intelligent.
You would also use soy, eres, or es to say where people are from.
Yo soy de los Estados Unidos.
I am from the United States.
Buenos días, señor
In Spanish, we use words like señor, señora, and señorita to show respect to someone. These words are often followed by the person's last name when you know it.
Señora is generally for married women, while señorita is usually for young women or unmarried women.
Señor can be used for any man.
If you are addressing people directly, you will just use señor, señora, and señorita, but if you are speaking of them, you'll have to use words like el and la before these titles.
Señor Sánchez, ¿cómo está usted?
Mr. Sánchez, how are you?
El señor Pérez es americano.
Mr. Pérez is American.