Hace, Está or Hay are they interchangeable or do you just have to learn when to use which one?

Mark G.A1Kwiziq community member

Hace, Está or Hay are they interchangeable or do you just have to learn when to use which one?

From your examples we have


Hace viento
It is windy

Está soleado.
It is sunny

Hay niebla.
It is foggy


How do we know when to use which one please? 

Asked 5 years ago
InmaNative Spanish expert teacher in Kwiziq

Hola Mark,

I am afraid when it comes to weather expressions it is very idiomatic so it hardly coincides with the English literal translations. So, there is a bit of memorising to do.

Saludos

Inma

Garry M.A2Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

hacer/hay goes with nouns while estar goes with adjectives and participles. But words such as calor and frío are nouns in Spanish whereas in English they're adjectives. Go figure! So, yes memorization is sometimes esential!

Hace, Está or Hay are they interchangeable or do you just have to learn when to use which one?

From your examples we have


Hace viento
It is windy

Está soleado.
It is sunny

Hay niebla.
It is foggy


How do we know when to use which one please? 

Sign in to submit your answer

Don't have an account yet? Join today

Ask a question

Find your Spanish level for FREE

Test your Spanish to the CEFR standard

Find your Spanish level
I'll be right with you...