Even beyond just emotions, in Portuguese the “be” verb can be translated into two different verbs: “ser” and “estar”. They are two complete separate things - so separate that English classes kinda turned the “to be” verb into a meme due to how long it takes to teach Portuguese speakers to use it and understand what it means in each sentence.
“Ser”: to be someone who is something. Usually more permanent, but not necessarily.
“Estar”: to be in the state of something. Usually more temporary, but also applies to permanent states.
Some examples showing how the meaning of some expressions change depending on which verb you use:
You are sick
“Ser”: you are a sick (twisted/evil) person.
“Estar”: you have caught some sickness.
You are sad
“Ser”: life has made you sad in general.
“Estar”: you’re feeling sad right now.
You are beautiful:
“Ser”: you are a beautiful person.
“Estar”: you are looking great today.
You’re good at this:
“Ser”: literal, you’re good at this.
“Estar”: implies being good is not the default but you have reached the point of being good at this.
**you’re funny drunk":
“Ser”: when you’re drunk you are funny.
“Estar”: you are drunk now and this time you turned out to be funny while drunk. Or, in this point of your life you’re funny when you’re drunk.
it’s cold there:
“Ser”: that is a cold place.
“Estar”: that place is cold right now.
it’s cold there now
“Ser”: it’s like saying that winters in that place used to be mild but nowadays winter there can get pretty cold
“Estar”: that place is cold right now.
Little trick, anything that you would use “estar” in romance languages aka Portuguese, use “feel” instead of “be”, it’s just as valid and there’s less misunderstandings.
Also, for your examples, you would never interpret “you are sad” as ser, since ser describes adjectives, it’s always estar. Your ser version would be “you are a sad person” aka “eres un triste” (in Spanish).
Even beyond just emotions, in Portuguese the “be” verb can be translated into two different verbs: “ser” and “estar”. They are two complete separate things - so separate that English classes kinda turned the “to be” verb into a meme due to how long it takes to teach Portuguese speakers to use it and understand what it means in each sentence.
“Ser”: to be someone who is something. Usually more permanent, but not necessarily.
“Estar”: to be in the state of something. Usually more temporary, but also applies to permanent states.
Some examples showing how the meaning of some expressions change depending on which verb you use:
You are sick “Ser”: you are a sick (twisted/evil) person. “Estar”: you have caught some sickness.
You are sad “Ser”: life has made you sad in general. “Estar”: you’re feeling sad right now.
You are beautiful: “Ser”: you are a beautiful person. “Estar”: you are looking great today.
You’re good at this: “Ser”: literal, you’re good at this. “Estar”: implies being good is not the default but you have reached the point of being good at this.
**you’re funny drunk": “Ser”: when you’re drunk you are funny. “Estar”: you are drunk now and this time you turned out to be funny while drunk. Or, in this point of your life you’re funny when you’re drunk.
it’s cold there: “Ser”: that is a cold place. “Estar”: that place is cold right now.
it’s cold there now “Ser”: it’s like saying that winters in that place used to be mild but nowadays winter there can get pretty cold “Estar”: that place is cold right now.
Little trick, anything that you would use “estar” in romance languages aka Portuguese, use “feel” instead of “be”, it’s just as valid and there’s less misunderstandings.
Also, for your examples, you would never interpret “you are sad” as ser, since ser describes adjectives, it’s always estar. Your ser version would be “you are a sad person” aka “eres un triste” (in Spanish).