ser

See also: Appendix:Variations of "ser"

Languages (31)

English

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Asturian • Baure • Catalan • Chinese • Czech • Danish • Galician • Hungarian • Italian • Ladino • Lolopo • Mauritian Creole • Middle Dutch • Middle English • Mirandese • Northern Kurdish • Norwegian Bokmål • Norwegian Nynorsk • Pohnpeian • Polish • Portuguese • Romanian • Romansch • Slovene • Spanish • Swedish • Tagalog • Turkish • Volapük • Welsh

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Page categories

English

Etymology 1

Noun

ser

1. Abbreviation of serial.

Etymology 2

Noun

ser (plural sers)

1. (historical) An old Indian unit of weight, equal to 80 tolas, or one fortieth of a maund.

Etymology 3

From Middle English ser. Popularised in modern fantasy by George R. R. Martin in the A Song of Ice and Fire series starting in 1996.

Noun

ser (plural sers)

1. (archaic, now chiefly fantasy) Alternative spelling of sir

   Would ser care to dine this evening?

   • 1996, George R. R. Martin, A Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire: Book One, Bantam, →ISBN:

     "Ser Willem is a good man and true,” said Ser Oswell.
     “But not of the Kingsguard,” Ser Gerold pointed out.

   • 2014 January 16, Miles Cameron, The Fell Sword, Hachette UK, →ISBN:

     Lady Mary – the Queen's handmaiden – was Ser Gawain's lady; her veil fluttered from his shoulder.

   • 2023 July 21, Ivan Lekoski, Invictus, Austin Macauley Publishers, →ISBN:

     You don't strike me as an ordinary soldier, are you perchance Ser Lancelot Germaine of the Round Table?

Anagrams

• res., ERs, res, RSE, RES, Res., ERS, SRE, ers, -ers, ESR

Asturian

Etymology

From Early Medieval Latin essere, from Latin esse.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈseɾ/, [ˈseɾ]

Verb

ser

1. to be

Conjugation

Impersonal forms
Infinitive		ser
Gerund		siendo
Past participle		sío
Personal forms
		yo	tu	él~elli/-a/-o	nosotros/-es~nós	vosotros/-es~vós	ellos/-es
Indicative	Present	soi ~ so	yes	ye	somos	sois	son
	Imperfect preterite	yera	yeres	yera	yéremos ~ yéramos	yereis ~ yerais	yeren
	Perfect preterite	fui	fuisti ~ fuesti fosti	foi fo	fuimos ~ fuemos fomos	fuistis ~ fuestis fostis	fueron foron
	Pluperfect preterite	fuera ~ fuere fora ~ fore	fueras ~ fueres foras ~ fores	fuera ~ fuere fora ~ fore	fuéramos ~ fuéremos fóramos ~ fóremos	fuerais ~ fuereis forais ~ foreis	fueran ~ fueren foran ~ foren
		yo	tu	él~elli/-a/-o	nosotros/-es~nós	vosotros/-es~vós	ellos/-es
Subjunctive	Present	seya sía	seyas sías	seya sía	seyamos síamos	seyáis síais	seyan sían
	Imperfect preterite	fuera ~ fuere fora ~ fore	fueras ~ fueres foras ~ fores	fuera ~ fuere fora ~ fore	fuéramos ~ fuéremos fóramos ~ fóremos	fuerais ~ fuereis forais ~ foreis	fueran ~ fueren foran ~ foren
		yo	tu	él~elli/-a/-o	nosotros/-es~nós	vosotros/-es~vós	ellos/-es
Potential	Future	seré sedré	serás sedrás	será sedrá	seremos sedremos	seréis sedréis	serán sedrán
	Conditional	sería sedría	seríes sedríes	sería sedría	seríamos ~ seríemos sedríamos ~ sedríemos	seríais ~ seríeis sedríais ~ sedríeis	seríen sedríen
		-	tu	vusté	nosotros/-es~nós	vosotros/-es~vós	vustedes
Imperative			sé	seya sía	vamos ser	sei	seyan sían

• Gramática de la Llingua Asturiana
• Normes ortográfiques
• Oslin-Ast

Noun

ser m (plural seres)

1. being

Derived terms

• ser humanu

Baure

Noun

ser

1. tooth

   niser — my tooth

   eser — a tooth, someone's tooth

   nitorak to eser — I found a/someone's tooth

References

• Languages of the Amazon (2012, →ISBN

Catalan

Alternative forms

• ésser

Etymology 1

Perhaps borrowed from Aragonese or Spanish ser. Doublet of ésser.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [ˈse]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [ˈsə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈseɾ]

• Audio:

  (file)

Verb

ser (first-person singular present soc, first-person singular preterite fui, past participle estat or sigut); root stress: (Central, Valencia, Balearic) /e/

1. (intransitive) to be, to exist

   Ser o no ser, aquesta és la qüestió.

   To be or not to be, that is the question.

2. (intransitive, +adverbial phrase) to be located (to be in a place)
3. (transitive, copulative) to be (used to connect a noun to another noun)
4. (transitive, copulative) to have a characteristic (used to connect a noun to an adjective that describes an inherent property)
5. (auxiliary) auxiliary verb to form the passive voice, together with a past participle

   han estat enganyats

   they have been deceived

Usage notes

• This is one of two verbs that can be translated as to be, the other being estar. Ser/ésser indicates an inherent quality, whereas estar indicates temporary qualities that apply only at a particular time. Ser/ésser relates to estar as essence relates to state, etymologically as well as semantically.

Conjugation

infinitive			ser
gerund			sent, essent
past participle				masculine		feminine
		singular		estat, sigut		estada, siguda
		plural		estats, siguts		estades, sigudes
person		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative		jo	tu	ell/ella vostè	nosaltres nós	vosaltres vós	ells/elles vostès
	present	soc	ets	és	som	sou	són
	imperfect	era	eres	era	érem	éreu	eren
	future	seré	seràs	serà	serem	sereu	seran
	preterite	fui	fores	fou	fórem	fóreu	foren
	conditional	seria, fora	series, fores	seria, fora	seríem, fórem	seríeu, fóreu	serien, foren
subjunctive		jo	tu	ell/ella vostè	nosaltres nós	vosaltres vós	ells/elles vostès
	present	sigui	siguis	sigui	siguem	sigueu	siguin
	imperfect	fos	fossis	fos	fóssim	fóssiu	fossin
imperative		—	tu	vostè	nosaltres	vosaltres vós	vostès
	affirmative	—	sigues	sigui	siguem	sigueu	siguin
	negative (no)	—	no siguis	no sigui	no siguem	no sigueu	no siguin

    Conjugation of ser (second conjugation, irregular)

Derived terms

• o sigui
• semblar ser

Etymology 2

Nominalization of Etymology 1.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Valencia) [ˈser]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) unknown

Noun

ser m (plural sers)

1. being (living creature)

Further reading

• “ser” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “ser” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Chinese

Etymology 1

From clipping of English server.

Pronunciation

• Cantonese (Jyutping): soe¹

---

• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: soe¹
    • Yale: sēu
    • Cantonese Pinyin: soe¹
    • Guangdong Romanization: sê¹
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /sœː⁵⁵/

Noun

ser

1. (Hong Kong Cantonese, computing) server (Classifier: 個／个 c; 部 c)

Derived terms

• 死ser

 

See also

• server

Etymology 2

From clipping of English search.

Alternative forms

• sear

Pronunciation

• Cantonese (Jyutping): soe¹

---

• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: soe¹
    • Yale: sēu
    • Cantonese Pinyin: soe¹
    • Guangdong Romanization: sê¹
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /sœː⁵⁵/

Verb

ser

1. (Hong Kong Cantonese, computing) to search on the Internet; to google

See also

• search (soe1 cyu4)

Czech

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈsɛr]
• Rhymes: -ɛr

Verb

ser

1. second-person singular imperative of srát

Danish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /seːr/, [seɐ̯ˀ]

Verb

ser

1. present of se

Galician

Etymology

From Old Galician-Portuguese ser, from Early Medieval Latin essere, from Latin esse. The forms son (“I am”) and sodes pl (“you are”) derive from a Vulgar Latin *sonō and *sutis.

Along the way, the verb absorbed Old Galician-Portuguese seer < Latin sedēre (“sit”). The latter supplied the present subjunctive of modern ser, where /-ʃ-/ reflects Late Latin /-(d)j-/, as in sexa < sedeat).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈseɾ/ [ˈs̺eɾ]
• Rhymes: -eɾ
• Hyphenation: ser

Verb

ser (first-person singular present son, first-person singular preterite fun, past participle sido)
ser (first-person singular present sou, first-person singular preterite fum or fui, past participle sido, reintegrationist norm)

1. (copulative) to be

   Brais é moi alto ― Brais is very tall.

2. (auxiliary) to be; forms the passive voice [with past participle]
3. (intransitive) to be (to have as one’s place of origin) [with de ‘from somewhere’]
4. (intransitive) to be (someone’s); to belong to [with de ‘someone’]
5. (intransitive) to be for; to be to (to have as its purpose) [with para (+ personal infinitive) or de (+ personal infinitive) ‘for doing something’]
6. (intransitive) to be; indicates persistence or reiteration [with a (+ infinitive)]
   • 1929, Antolín Santos Mediante, Escolma:

     anque o matrimoño é cruz,
     i eu negá-lo non pretendo,
     dous son a cargar con ela
     que sempre se alivia o peso

     even though the marriage is a cross,
     I don't mean to deny it,
     there are two carrying it,
     that always relieves the weight

Usage notes

Like Portuguese and Spanish, Galician has two different verbs that are usually translated to English as “to be”. The verb ser relates to essence, origin, or physical description. In contrast, the verb estar relates to current state or position.

Conjugation

	Singular			Plural
	First-person (eu)	Second-person (ti)	Third-person (el / ela / Vde.)	First-person (nós)	Second-person (vós)	Third-person (eles / elas / Vdes.)
Infinitive
Impersonal	ser
Personal	ser	seres	ser	sermos	serdes	seren
Gerund
	sendo
Past participle
Masculine	sido			sidos
Feminine	sida			sidas
Indicative
Present	son	es	é	somos	sodes	son
Imperfect	era	eras	era	eramos	erades	eran
Preterite	fun	fuches	foi	fomos	fostes	foron
Pluperfect	fora	foras	fora	foramos	forades	foran
Future	serei	serás	será	seremos	seredes	serán
Conditional	sería	serías	sería	seriamos	seriades	serían
Subjunctive
Present	sexa	sexas	sexa	sexamos	sexades	sexan
Imperfect	fose	foses	fose	fósemos	fósedes	fosen
Future	for	fores	for	formos	fordes	foren
Imperative
Affirmative		sé	sexa	sexamos	sede	sexan
Negative (non)		non sexas	non sexa	non sexamos	non sexades	non sexan

    Conjugation of ser (irregular)

	Singular			Plural
	First-person (eu)	Second-person (ti / tu)	Third-person (ele / ela / você)	First-person (nós)	Second-person (vós)	Third-person (eles / elas / vocês)
Infinitive
Impersonal	ser
Personal	ser	seres	ser	sermos	serdes	serem
Gerund
	sendo
Past participle
Masculine	sido			—
Feminine	—			—
Indicative
Present	sou	és	é	somos	sodes, sois	som, são
Imperfect	era	eras	era	éramos	érades, éreis, érais1	eram
Preterite	fum, fui	foste, foche1	foi	fomos	fostes	fôrom, foram
Pluperfect	fora	foras	fora	fôramos	fôrades, fôreis, fôrais1	foram
Future	serei	serás	será	seremos	seredes, sereis	serám, serão
Conditional	seria	serias	seria	seríamos	seríades, seríeis, seríais1	seriam
Subjunctive
Present	seja	sejas	seja	sejamos	sejades, sejais	sejam
Imperfect	fosse	fosses	fosse	fôssemos	fôssedes, fôsseis	fossem
Future	for	fores	for	formos	fordes	forem
Imperative
Affirmative		sê	seja	sejamos	sede	sejam
Negative (nom)		nom sejas	nom seja	nom sejamos	nom sejades, nom sejais	nom sejam

    Reintegrated conjugation of ser (irregular) (See Appendix:Reintegrationism)

¹Less recommended.

Derived terms

• ser quen (“to be able to; to dare”)

Noun

ser m (plural seres)

1. being (living creature)

See also

• estar

Further reading

• “ser”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, 2012–2024
• Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, Ana Isabel Boullón Agrelo (2006–2022) “ser”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega

Hungarian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈʃɛr]
• Hyphenation: ser
• Rhymes: -ɛr

Noun

ser (countable and uncountable, plural serek)

1. (archaic, dialectal, humorous) Alternative form of sör (“beer”).

Usage notes

An archaic and dialectal variant of sör, but today it can also be humorous in informal conversations. In compound words and derivations, almost only sör is used.

Declension

Inflection (stem in -e-, front unrounded harmony)
	singular	plural
nominative	ser	serek
accusative	sert	sereket
dative	sernek	sereknek
instrumental	serrel	serekkel
causal-final	serért	serekért
translative	serré	serekké
terminative	serig	serekig
essive-formal	serként	serekként
essive-modal	serül	—
inessive	serben	serekben
superessive	seren	sereken
adessive	sernél	sereknél
illative	serbe	serekbe
sublative	serre	serekre
allative	serhez	serekhez
elative	serből	serekből
delative	serről	serekről
ablative	sertől	serektől
non-attributive possessive - singular	seré	sereké
non-attributive possessive - plural	seréi	serekéi

Possessive forms of ser
possessor	single possession	multiple possessions
1st person sing.	serem	sereim
2nd person sing.	sered	sereid
3rd person sing.	sere	serei
1st person plural	serünk	sereink
2nd person plural	seretek	sereitek
3rd person plural	serük	sereik

Derived terms

Compound words

• serfőző

 

Further reading

• ser , redirecting to sör in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (“The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language”, abbr.: ÉrtSz.). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN

Italian

Etymology

Clipping of messer.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɛr/
• Rhymes: -ɛr
• Hyphenation: sèr

Noun

ser m

1. (historical) sir (title and form of address for a gentleman, shortened from messer)

   Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci ― Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (literally, “Leonardo son of Peter, from Vinci”)

Ladino

Verb

ser (Latin spelling, Hebrew spelling סיר)

1. to be

Lolopo

Etymology

From Proto-Loloish *swa² (Bradley), from Proto-Sino-Tibetan. Cognate with Burmese သွား (swa:), Japhug tɯɕɣa, Tibetan སོ (so), Drung sa, Tedim Chin ha:², Jingpho wa.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [sə²¹]

Noun

ser 

1. (Yao'an) tooth

Mauritian Creole

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɛː/

Etymology 1

From French sœur.

Noun

ser

1. sister

   Synonym: didi

Etymology 2

From French cher.

Adjective

ser

1. dear
2. expensive

Middle Dutch

Noun

ser

1. (title and pronoun) sir, lord
   • 1301-1350, Van den VII vroeden van binnen Rome. Een dichtwerk der XIVde eeuw (INL)

     Garijn, ser Diederecs sone

     Garijn, sir Diederec's son

   • 1414, Hennen van Merchtenen's Cornicke van Brabant (INL)

     Als ijemen sterven plach, hinc men daer teken ser wapen

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Further reading

• Verwijs, E., Verdam, J. (1885–1929) “ser (I)”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN, page I

Middle English

Etymology 1

Noun

ser

1. Alternative form of sire
   • 1407, The Testimony of William Thorpe, page 40:

     And I seide, “Ser, in his tyme maister Ioon Wiclef was holden of ful many men the grettis clerk that thei knewen lyuynge vpon erthe.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Etymology 2

Noun

ser

1. Alternative form of sere (“dry”)

Etymology 3

Adjective

ser

1. Alternative form of sere (“differing”)

Mirandese

Etymology

From Early Medieval Latin essere, from Latin esse.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈseɾ/

Verb

ser

1. to be (indicates a permanent quality)

Conjugation

infinitive			ser
gerund			sendo
past participle				singular		plural
		masculine		sido		sidos
		feminine		sida		sidas
person		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative		you	tu	el	nós	bós	eilhes
	present	sou	sós	yê	somos	sodes	son
	imperfect	era	eras	era	éramos	érades	éran
	preterite	fui	fuste	fui	fumos	fustes	fúrun
	pluperfect	fura	furas	fura	fúramos	fúrades	fúran
	future	serei	serás	será	seremos	sereis	seran
	conditional	serie	series	serie	seriemos	seriedes	serien
subjunctive		you	tu	el	nós	bós	eilhes
	present	seia	seias	seia	séiamos	séiades	séian
	preterite	fusse	fusses	fusse	fússemos	fússedes	fússen
	future	fur	fures	fur	furmos	furdes	fúren
imperative		—	tu	—	—	bós	—
	affirmative	—	sei	—	—	sede	—
	negative	—	—	—	—	—	—
personal infinitive		you	tu	el	nós	bós	eilhes
		ser	seres	ser	sermos	serdes	séren

    Conjugation of ser (irregular)

Noun

ser m (plural seres)

1. being

See also

• star

Northern Kurdish

Etymology 1

From Proto-Iranian *cŕ̥Hah, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *ćŕ̥Has (“head, top”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱŕ̥h₂-os, derived from the root *ḱerh₂- (“head, horn”). As used in the sense of "over" displaced wer, which got the sense of "around" instead.

Alternative forms

• serî

Noun

ser m (Arabic spelling سەر)

1. (anatomy) head

   Synonym: kelle

2. point, tip
3. beginning, start
4. end, extremity
5. (colloquial, vulgar) penis, dick

Declension

Definite masculine gender
Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	ser	ser
Construct	serê	serên
Oblique	serî	seran
Demonstrative oblique	wî serî	wan seran
Vocative	sero	serino
Indefinite masculine gender
Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	serek	serin
Construct	serekî	serine
Oblique	serekî	serinan

Declension of ser

Derived terms

• bi ser keftin ("to succeed")
• birin serî ("to bring to an end, get it over with")
• ser dan ("to visit")
• sereke ("main")
• serok, serek ("president")
• bi ser va bûn ("to belong to")
• va ser kirin, bi ser va kirin, kirin ser, bi ser xistin ("to add, put on")
• bi ser da birin ("to deceive, tempt")

Etymology 2

Same as above.

Preposition

ser (Arabic spelling سەر)

1. on, on top (with li (“on; at”))

   Antonym: bin

   li ser maseyê ― on the table

2. over (with bi (“with”) or di ... re (“through”))

   di ser me ra bihurî ― passed over us

   bi ser ketin ― win, win over; literally "get over, get on top"

References

• Chyet, Michael L. (2020) “ser I”, in Ferhenga Birûskî: Kurmanji–English Dictionary (Language Series; 2), volume 2, London: Transnational Press, page 233
• Chyet, Michael L. (2020) “ser II”, in Ferhenga Birûskî: Kurmanji–English Dictionary (Language Series; 2), volume 2, London: Transnational Press, page 234

Norwegian Bokmål

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /seːr/
• Rhymes: -eːr

Verb

ser

1. present of se

Norwegian Nynorsk

Verb

ser

1. present of sjå

Pohnpeian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɛr/

Verb

ser

1. (intransitive) to run aground

Interjection

ser

1. An exclamation used to attract the attention of two or more people.

Polish

Polish Wikipedia has an article on:

ser

Wikipedia ^pl

Alternative forms

• syr (obsolete)

Etymology

Inherited from Old Polish syr, from Proto-Slavic *syrъ. Doublet of żur.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɛr/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛr
• Syllabification: ser
• Homophone: sir

Noun

ser m inan (diminutive serek, related adjective serowy or (obsolete) serny)

1. (uncountable) cheese (dairy product made from curdled or cultured milk)

   Hypernym: nabiał

2. (countable) cheese (any particular variety of cheese)
3. (countable) cheese (piece of cheese, especially one moulded into a large round shape during manufacture)

   Hypernym: porcja

Declension

	singular	plural
nominative	ser	sery
genitive	sera	serów
dative	serowi	serom
accusative	ser	sery
instrumental	serem	serami
locative	serze	serach
vocative	serze	sery

Declension of ser

Derived terms

adjectives

• serowaty

 

nouns

• ser biały
• ser krowi
• ser pleśniowy
• ser śmietankowy
• ser topiony
• ser wegański
• ser żółty
• sernica
• sernik
• serojadka
• serowar
• serowiatka
• serowiec
• serownia

 

verbs

• cieszyć się jak głupi do sera impf
• śmiać się jak głupi do sera impf

 

Related terms

adjectives

• sernikowy
• serowarski

 

nouns

• serniczek
• serowarnia
• serowarstwo
• serowatość

 

verbs

• serowacieć impf

 

Further reading

• ser in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• ser in Polish dictionaries at PWN
• Brückner, Aleksander (1927) “ser”, in Słownik etymologiczny języka polskiego [Etymological Dictionary of the Polish Language] (in Polish), Warsaw: Wiedza Powszechna

Portuguese

Etymology

From Old Galician-Portuguese ser, from Early Medieval Latin essere, from Latin esse. The forms sou (“I am”) and sois pl (“you are”) derive from a Vulgar Latin *sonō and *sutis.

Along the way, the verb absorbed Old Galician-Portuguese seer < Latin sedēre (“sit”). The latter supplied the present subjunctive of modern ser, where /-ʒ-/ reflects Late Latin /-(d)j-/, as in seja < sedeat).

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈse(ʁ)/ [ˈse(h)]

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈse(ʁ)/ [ˈse(h)]
  • (São Paulo) IPA^(key): /ˈse(ɾ)/
  • (Rio de Janeiro) IPA^(key): /ˈse(ʁ)/ [ˈse(χ)]
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈse(ɻ)/

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈseɾ/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈseɾ/
  • (Southern Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈse.ɾi/

• Rhymes: -eɾ
• Homophones: sê (Brazil), cê (Brazil) (with -r dropping)
• Hyphenation: ser

Verb

ser (first-person singular present sou, first-person singular preterite fui, past participle sido)

2. (copulative) to be (to have the given quality), especially a quality that is intrinsic or not expected to change, contrasting with estar which denotes a temporary quality

   Ela está bonita, mas não é bonita.

   She is looking beautiful, but she is not beautiful.

4. (transitive) to be (to be an example or type of, or the same as)

   Pessoas são mamíferos.

   People are mammals.

   A soma de um e dois é três.

   The sum of one and two is three.

6. (auxiliary) to be; forms the passive voice [with past participle]

   O carro foi vendido pelo seu antigo dono.

   The car was sold by its previous owner.

   Espero que os criminosos sejam punidos.

   I hope the criminals are punished.

8. (intransitive) to be; indicates a point in time

   Que horas são?

   What time is it?

   São cinco horas.

   It is five o’clock.

10. (intransitive) to be in (to be located in) [with em ‘location’ or another locational preposition or adverb]

    Synonyms: ficar em, localizar-se em

    Minha casa é num bairro pobre.

    My house is in a poor neighbourhood.

    Onde são essas cidades?

    Where are these cities?

12. (intransitive) to be (to have as one’s place of origin) [with de ‘from somewhere’]

    Synonym: vir de

    Esses equipamentos são da Alemanha.

    These pieces of equipment are from Germany.

    Nenhum de nós é de um país estrangeiro.

    None of us is from a foreign country.

14. (intransitive) to be (someone’s); to belong to [with de ‘someone’]

    Synonym: pertencer a

    Essa casa é do prefeito.

    This house belongs to the mayor.

    Não mexa em nada que não for seu.

    Don’t touch anything that is not yours.

16. (intransitive) to be for; to be to (to have as its purpose) [with para (+ personal infinitive) or de (+ personal infinitive) ‘for doing something’]

    Synonym: servir para

    Esse tipo de faca é para cortar tomates.

    This type of knife is for cutting tomatoes.

18. (impersonal) to be supposed to; should; introduces an expected or demanded action [with para (+ subject pronoun (optional) with personal infinitive)]

    Synonym: dever

    Não sei porque está demorando, já era para o filme ter começado.

    I don’t know why it is taking so long, the film should have started already.

    É para comermos toda a carne.

    We are supposed to eat all the meat.

20. (transitive) to be; to cost (to be worth a given amount of money)

    Synonyms: custar, valer

    Duas maçãs são dez centavos.

    Two apples are ten cents.

22. (intransitive) to happen; to take place; to occur

    Synonyms: acontecer, haver, ocorrer, ter, produzir-se, realizar-se, sobrevir, suceder

    O que será, será.

    Whatever happens happens.

    Quando é seu aniversário?

    When is your birthday?

24. (intransitive) to be against or in favour of [with a favor de ‘in favor of’; or with contra ‘against’]

    Alguns foram contra a guerra, mas a maioria foi a favor.

    Some were against the war, but most were in favour.

26. (poetic, intransitive) to exist; to be

    O mal não é.

    Evil does not exist.

28. (impersonal, transitive) used for emphasis

    Eu é que vim.

    I’m the one who came here.

Usage notes

Portuguese has two different verbs that are usually translated to English as “to be”: generally ser relates to essence, contrasting with estar, which relates to state.

Contrast the following:

• O homem está feliz. ― The man is [currently] happy.
• O homem é feliz. ― The man is [always] happy.
• Você está louco? ― Are you crazy [acting or currently insane]?
• Você é louco? ― Are you crazy [permanently insane]?
• Ela está em casa. ― She is [currently] at home.
• Ela é do Brasil. ― She is [originally] from Brazil.
• Ela está no Brasil. ― She is [currently] in Brazil.

Conjugation

	Singular			Plural
	First-person (eu)	Second-person (tu)	Third-person (ele / ela / você)	First-person (nós)	Second-person (vós)	Third-person (eles / elas / vocês)
Infinitive
Impersonal	ser
Personal	ser	seres	ser	sermos	serdes	serem
Gerund
	sendo
Past participle
Masculine	sido			—
Feminine	—			—
Indicative
Present	sou	és	é	somos	sois	são
Imperfect	era	eras	era	éramos	éreis	eram
Preterite	fui	foste	foi	fomos	fostes	foram
Pluperfect	fora	foras	fora	fôramos	fôreis	foram
Future	serei	serás	será	seremos	sereis	serão
Conditional	seria	serias	seria	seríamos	seríeis	seriam
Subjunctive
Present	seja	sejas	seja	sejamos	sejais	sejam
Imperfect	fosse	fosses	fosse	fôssemos	fôsseis	fossem
Future	for	fores	for	formos	fordes	forem
Imperative
Affirmative		sê	seja	sejamos	sede	sejam
Negative (não)		não sejas	não seja	não sejamos	não sejais	não sejam

    Conjugation of ser (irregular) (See Appendix:Portuguese verbs)

Quotations

For quotations using this term, see Citations:ser.

Synonyms

• (forms the passive voice): any reflexive pronoun

See also

• estar
• ter
• haver

Noun

ser m (plural seres)

1. being (a living creature)

   Synonyms: criatura, ente

Quotations

For quotations using this term, see Citations:ser.

Derived terms

• ser humano
• ser vivo

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin serum, French sérum. Cf. also zer.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ser/

Noun

ser n (plural seruri)

1. serum

Declension

	singular		plural
	indefinite articulation	definite articulation	indefinite articulation	definite articulation
nominative/accusative	(un) ser	serul	(niște) seruri	serurile
genitive/dative	(unui) ser	serului	(unor) seruri	serurilor
vocative	serule		serurilor

Declension of ser

Romansch

Verb

ser (Sursilvan)

1. Alternative form of seser

Slovene

Etymology 1

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *śěrъ.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /séːr/

Adjective

sẹ̑r (comparative bȍlj sẹ̑r, superlative nȁjbolj sẹ̑r)

1. (archaic) grey, gray (color/colour)

   Synonym: siv

Declension

The diacritics used in this section of the entry are non-tonal. If you are a native tonal speaker, please help by adding the tonal marks.

Hard
	masculine	feminine	neuter
nom. sing.	sér	séra	séro
singular
	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	sér ind séri def	séra	séro
genitive	sérega	sére	sérega
dative	séremu	séri	séremu
accusative	nominativeinan or genitiveanim	séro	séro
locative	sérem	séri	sérem
instrumental	sérim	séro	sérim
dual
	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	séra	séri	séri
genitive	sérih	sérih	sérih
dative	sérima	sérima	sérima
accusative	séra	séri	séri
locative	sérih	sérih	sérih
instrumental	sérima	sérima	sérima
plural
	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	séri	sére	séra
genitive	sérih	sérih	sérih
dative	sérim	sérim	sérim
accusative	sére	sére	séra
locative	sérih	sérih	sérih
instrumental	sérimi	sérimi	sérimi

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɛ́ːr/

Noun

sȇr m anim

1. vulture of the genus Gypaetus

   brkati ser ― bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus)

Declension

The diacritics used in this section of the entry are non-tonal. If you are a native tonal speaker, please help by adding the tonal marks.

Masculine anim., hard o-stem
nom. sing.	sȇr
gen. sing.	sȇra
	singular	dual	plural
nominative (imenovȃlnik)	sȇr	sȇra	sȇri
genitive (rodȋlnik)	sȇra	sȇrov	sȇrov
dative (dajȃlnik)	sȇru	sȇroma	sȇrom
accusative (tožȋlnik)	sȇra	sȇra	sȇre
locative (mẹ̑stnik)	sȇru	sȇrih	sȇrih
instrumental (orọ̑dnik)	sȇrom	sȇroma	sȇri

Further reading

• “ser”, in Slovarji Inštituta za slovenski jezik Frana Ramovša ZRC SAZU, portal Fran
• “ser”, in Termania, Amebis
• See also the general references

Spanish

Etymology

From Early Medieval Latin essere, from Latin esse. The form sois pl (“you are”) derives from a Vulgar Latin *sutis.

Along the way, the verb absorbed Old Spanish seer < Latin sedēre (“sit”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈseɾ/ [ˈseɾ]
• Rhymes: -eɾ
• Syllabification: ser

Verb

ser (first-person singular present soy, first-person singular preterite fui, past participle sido)

1. to be (essentially or identified as)

   Yo soy de los Estados Unidos. ― I am from the United States.

   Errar es humano. ― To err is human.

   • 2007, El Sueño de Morfeo, Nada es Suficiente:

     ¿Qué voy a ser si te he dado lo que soy?

     What am I going to be if I've given you what I am?

   • 2007, El Sueño de Morfeo, Para Toda la Vida:

     Si fueras una gota de agua, nadie volvería a tener sed

     If you were a drop of water, no one would thirst again

2. to be (in the passive voice sense)

   La guitarra fue tocada. ― The guitar was played.

3. to exist; to occur

   La fiesta será mañana. ― The party will be tomorrow.

Usage notes

• Spanish has two different verbs that are usually translated to English as “to be”: ser relates to essence, contrasting with estar, which relates to state. Contrast the following:
• El hombre está feliz. ― The man is [currently] happy.
• El hombre es feliz. ― The man is [always] happy.
• ¿Estás loco? ― Are you crazy [currently out of your mind]?
• ¿Eres loco? ― Are you crazy [an insane person]?
• El hombre está en España. ― The man is [currently] in Spain.
• El hombre es de España. ― The man is [originally] from Spain.
• ¿Cómo estás? ― How are you?
• ¿Cómo eres? ― What are you like?

However, when stating the location of an object (but not an event), estar is used whether the location is permanent or not:

• Madrid está en el centro de España. ― Madrid is in central Spain.

Conjugation

infinitive			ser
gerund			siendo
past participle				masculine		feminine
		singular		sido		sida
		plural		sidos		sidas
		singular			plural
		1st person	2nd person	3rd person	1st person	2nd person	3rd person
indicative		yo	tú vos	él/ella/ello usted	nosotros nosotras	vosotros vosotras	ellos/ellas ustedes
	present	soy	erestú sosvos	es	somos	sois	son
	imperfect	era	eras	era	éramos	erais	eran
	preterite	fui	fuiste	fue	fuimos	fuisteis	fueron
	future	seré	serás	será	seremos	seréis	serán
	conditional	sería	serías	sería	seríamos	seríais	serían
subjunctive		yo	tú vos	él/ella/ello usted	nosotros nosotras	vosotros vosotras	ellos/ellas ustedes
	present	sea	seastú seásvos2	sea	seamos	seáis	sean
	imperfect (ra)	fuera	fueras	fuera	fuéramos	fuerais	fueran
	imperfect (se)	fuese	fueses	fuese	fuésemos	fueseis	fuesen
	future1	fuere	fueres	fuere	fuéremos	fuereis	fueren
imperative		—	tú vos	usted	nosotros nosotras	vosotros vosotras	ustedes
	affirmative		sé	sea	seamos	sed	sean
	negative		no seas	no sea	no seamos	no seáis	no sean

    Conjugation of ser (irregular) (See Appendix:Spanish verbs)

¹Mostly obsolete, now mainly used in legal language.
²Argentine and Uruguayan voseo prefers the tú form for the present subjunctive.

		singular			plural
		1st person	2nd person	3rd person	1st person	2nd person	3rd person
with infinitive ser
	dative	serme	serte	serle, serse	sernos	seros	serles, serse
	accusative	serme	serte	serlo, serla, serse	sernos	seros	serlos, serlas, serse
with gerund siendo
	dative	siéndome	siéndote	siéndole, siéndose	siéndonos	siéndoos	siéndoles, siéndose
	accusative	siéndome	siéndote	siéndolo, siéndola, siéndose	siéndonos	siéndoos	siéndolos, siéndolas, siéndose
with informal second-person singular tú/vos imperative sé
	dative	seme	sete	sele	senos	not used	seles
	accusative	seme	sete	selo, sela	senos	not used	selos, selas
with formal second-person singular imperative sea
	dative	séame	not used	séale, séase	séanos	not used	séales
	accusative	séame	not used	séalo, séala, séase	séanos	not used	séalos, séalas
with first-person plural imperative seamos
	dative	not used	seámoste	seámosle	seámonos	seámoos	seámosles
	accusative	not used	seámoste	seámoslo, seámosla	seámonos	seámoos	seámoslos, seámoslas
with informal second-person plural imperative sed
	dative	sedme	not used	sedle	sednos	seos	sedles
	accusative	sedme	not used	sedlo, sedla	sednos	seos	sedlos, sedlas
with formal second-person plural imperative sean
	dative	séanme	not used	séanle	séannos	not used	séanles, séanse
	accusative	séanme	not used	séanlo, séanla	séannos	not used	séanlos, séanlas, séanse

    Selected combined forms of ser (irregular)

These forms are generated automatically and may not actually be used. Pronoun usage varies by region.

Derived terms

• a no ser que
• a poder ser
• allá donde fueres, haz lo que vieres
• como sea
• érase que se era
• érase una vez
• es lo que hay
• es que
• llegar a ser
• lo que sea
• no puede ser
• no vaya a ser que
• o sea
• razón de ser
• sea como fuere
• sea cual fuere
• sea lo que fuera
• sea lo que sea

 

See also

• estar

Noun

ser m (plural seres)

1. a being, organism
2. nature, essence
3. value, worth

Related terms

• ser humano
• ser querido
• ser supremo

 

Further reading

• “ser”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014

Swedish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /seːr/

Verb

ser

1. present indicative of se

Anagrams

• ers, res

Tagalog

Etymology

Borrowed from English sir.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈseɾ/ [ˈsɛɾ]
• Rhymes: -eɾ
• Syllabification: ser

Noun

ser (Baybayin spelling ᜐᜒᜇ᜔)

1. (colloquial) sir (A respectful term of address to a man of higher rank or position [often older], especially if his name or proper title is unknown)

   Synonyms: ginoo, maginoo

Related terms

• mamsir

 

See also

• Don

Turkish

Etymology 1

From Persian سر (sar).

Noun

ser (definite accusative seri, plural serler)

1. (archaic) head

Synonyms

• (head): baş, kafa

Etymology 2

Verb

ser

1. second-person singular imperative of sermek

Volapük

Numeral

ser

1. zero

Welsh

Etymology

From Old Welsh serr, Proto-Celtic *serrā. Cf. Middle Irish serr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɛr/

Noun

ser m (plural serrod or serroedd, not mutable)

1. billhook, sickle, scythe
2. (dictionary) sword

Synonyms

• (scythe): pladur

References

• R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “ser”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies
• Matasović, Ranko (2009) Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN