This exam tips covers Common Ser/Estar Mistakes within Key irregular verbs: ser, estar, tener, ir for GCSE Spanish. Revise Key irregular verbs: ser, estar, tener, ir in Core Verbs — Present Tense for GCSE Spanish with 13 exam-style questions and 15 flashcards. Use this page as part of a wider topic revision path rather than treating it as an isolated fact. It is section 3 of 4 in this topic. Treat this as a marking guide for what examiners are looking for, not just a fact list.
⚠️ Common Ser/Estar Mistakes
These two errors appear in real GCSE scripts every year. Avoid them by learning the rule, not guessing.
❌ Error 1: Estoy médico.
✅ Correcto: Soy médico.
Why it costs marks: Profession uses ser, not estar. Your job is a defining characteristic — it does not change from moment to moment. Estoy + a profession is never correct in Spanish.
❌ Error 2: La tienda es en la calle.
✅ Correcto: La tienda está en la calle.
Why it costs marks: Location always uses estar, even for permanent buildings that never move. This is the single most common ser/estar error at GCSE — examiners see it in thousands of scripts. The rule is absolute: where something is = estar.