Tips 033: How To Know If You Really Know – Saber vs Conocer

How well do you know how to say you know what you know in Spanish?

It today’s podcast episode we will be looking at these two common verbs in Spanish: saber vs conocer. We will look at a different way of thinking of the translation of these two verbs and so common uses of each.

A quick summary for the uses of these two verbs for ‘to know’ are:

Saber – Facts, Information & How to do something

Conocer – People, Places & Things

The conjugations of these two verbs:

Saber
(Note it is irregular in first person)
Yo sé
Tú sabes
Él / ella sabe
Nosotros sabemos
Vosotros sabeís
Ellos saben

Conocer
(Also irregular in first person)
Yo conozco
Tú conoces
Él / ella conoce
Nosotros conocemos
Vosotros conocéis
Ellos conocen

Examples from the episode:

I’m going to be familiar with it tomorrow – Voy a conocer manaña (Reference from tip 17 – A Hack For The Future)

I don’t know where I am – No sé donde estoy

He knows the answer – Él sabe la respuesta

I don’t know – No lo sé

They know nothing – Ellos no saben nada

I know how to speak spanish – Yo sé hablar español.

I know how to find – Yo sé encontrar.

I know how to explain – Yo sé explicar.

I know how to say algo – Yo sé decir algo.

Only she knows how to find this house – Sólo ella sabe encontrar está casa

Who knows! – ¡Quien sabe!

God knows! – ¡Dios sabe!

I know mathematics – Yo sé matemáticas

Are you familiar with Spanish literature – ¿Conoces la literatura española?

Do you know my friend – ¿Conoces a mi amiga?

I don’t know her – Yo no la conozco.

I know Melbourne well – Yo conozco bien Melbourne.

I don’t know Spain but one day – No conozco España pero algún día.

He we met? – Nos hemos encontrado?

Have you met / Do you know each other – ¿os conocéis?

Quote from the episode:

“Sin saber el poder de las palabras, es imposible conocer al hombre.” – Confucius
(Without knowing the force of words, it is impossible to know man)

“lo conozco como la palma de la mano” – Spanish saying.
(I know it like the back of my hand)

How else could you use saber vs conocer?

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