Lesson 18 · 5 min read
Spanish Emotions and How You Feel
Talking about how you feel mostly uses "estar" plus an adjective, but Spanish also has a group of feelings expressed with "tener" that don't translate word-for-word from English — those are the ones worth learning carefully.
1. Feelings with estar
Feelings take "estar" because they report the state someone is in right now. "Ser" with the same adjective describes what a person is like instead, and the two say different things: "está aburrido" means he is bored, while "es aburrido" means he is boring.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| feliz | happy |
| triste | sad |
| cansado | tired |
| nervioso | nervous |
| enojado | angry |
| emocionado | excited |
| aburrido | bored |
| sorprendido | surprised |
2. Feelings with tener
These use "tener" (to have) instead of "to be" — a common mistake for English speakers is reaching for "estar" here.
| Spanish | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| tener miedo | to be afraid | Tengo miedo de las alturas. — I am afraid of heights. |
| tener hambre | to be hungry | |
| tener sueño | to be sleepy | |
| tener prisa | to be in a hurry | |
| tener celos | to be jealous |
3. Asking how someone feels
"¿Qué te pasa?" — what's happening to you — is the ordinary way to ask what's wrong, and is warmer than it looks translated. Answers usually pair estar with an adjective, or use "tener" for states English treats as adjectives: tengo miedo (I'm afraid), tengo sueño (I'm sleepy).
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Cómo te sientes? | How do you feel? |
| Me siento feliz. | I feel happy. |
| ¿Qué te pasa? | What's wrong? |
4. Asking, and responding well
Spanish distinguishes between a passing mood and a lasting disposition, and it does so with the verb rather than the adjective. Estar nervioso is nervous right now; ser nervioso is an anxious person by temperament. The same split runs through almost every feeling word in this lesson. When someone tells you something difficult, Spanish has short set responses that carry a lot of warmth: lo siento mucho, qué pena, ánimo. Reaching for one of these is far better than assembling a longer sentence and getting it slightly wrong.
| Spanish | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Lo siento mucho | I'm so sorry | Lo siento mucho, de verdad. — I'm really so sorry. |
| ¡Ánimo! | Chin up! / Hang in there! | ¡Ánimo, ya casi terminas! — Hang in there, you're nearly done! |
| Me alegro por ti | I'm happy for you | Me alegro mucho por ti. — I'm really happy for you. |
| estar de buen humor | to be in a good mood | Hoy está de buen humor. — She's in a good mood today. |
| No te preocupes | Don't worry | No te preocupes, no pasa nada. — Don't worry, it's fine. |
Use it in context
Checking in on a friend uses almost every word in this lesson at once.
- —¿Cómo te sientes? —Estoy cansado, pero bien.
'How are you feeling?' 'I'm tired, but fine.' - Estoy muy emocionado por el viaje.
I'm really excited about the trip. - —¿Qué te pasa? —Nada, tengo sueño.
'What's wrong?' 'Nothing, I'm sleepy.' - Tengo prisa, lo siento. Hablamos luego.
I'm in a hurry, sorry. We'll talk later. - No te preocupes, todo va a salir bien.
Don't worry, it'll all work out. - Me alegro mucho por ti.
I'm really happy for you. - Hoy estoy de buen humor.
I'm in a good mood today.
Both are correct — they mean different things
triste with ser and with estar
Estoy triste. — I'm sad right now.
Soy triste. — I'm a sad person.
Both are correct. Estar reports how you feel today; ser describes what someone is like. Estoy triste is what you almost always mean.
Common mistakes
Soy miedo → Tengo miedo
Several feelings English treats as adjectives are nouns in Spanish and take tener: tengo miedo, tengo sueño, tengo hambre, tengo prisa.
Estoy excitado → Estoy emocionado
For everyday "excited", emocionado is usually the safer choice — ilusionado works too; excitado can sound sexual in many contexts.
Quick check
___ miedo. — Tengo / Estoy
Show the answer
Tengo — Several feelings are nouns in Spanish and take tener.
___ nervioso antes del examen. — Estoy / Soy
Show the answer
Estoy — Nerves before an exam are a state.
'excited about something' is… — emocionado / excitado
Show the answer
emocionado — For everyday "excited", emocionado is usually the safer choice; excitado can sound sexual in many contexts.