Saber vs. Conocer

Saber vs. Conocer
To know, and to know
Saber y Conocer
 Both mean “to know” in Spanish.
 They are each used in distinctive
ways.
 Before we start let’s talk about the
conjugations of each verb in the
present indicative.
SABER
Yo
sé
Nosotros
sabemos
Tú
sabes
Vosotros
sabéis
Él/Ella,
Ud.
sabe
Ellos/as,
Uds.
saben
 Means
“to know”
 Is an –ER
verb
 Has an
irregular “yo”
form
CONOCER
yo
conozco
Nosotros
conocemos
Tú
conoces
Vosotros
conocéis
Él/Ella,
Ud.
conoce
Ellos/as,
Uds.
conocen
 Means
“to know”
 Is an –ER
verb
 Has an
irregular “yo”
form
Use of SABER - #1
 SABER + infinitive= to know how to
do an activity
 Claudia sabe esquiar.
 Claudia knows how to ski.
 Juan Carlos sabe cocinar muy bien
 Juan Carlos knows how to cook very well.
Use of SABER - #2
 SABER + factual information= to
know something (by heart)
 Teresa sabe el número de teléfono de
Vicente.
 Teresa knows Vicente´s phone number.
 ¿Sabes dónde está el Parque Central?
 Do you know where Central Park is?
 ¿Sabes quién es Cameron Díaz?
 Do you know who Cameron Díaz is?
*In this case can you identify her persona, but not
necessarily that you have personally met her.
SABER & Interrogatives
 SABER is used a lot with question
words.






¿Sabes
¿Sabes
¿Sabes
¿Sabes
¿Sabes
¿Sabes
dónde…? Do you know where?
cuál…? Do you know which?
cuándo …? Do you know when?
cuánto …? Do you know how much?
por qué…? Do you know why?
qué? Do you know what?
Use of Conocer - #1
 CONOCER + a + person= to know a
person (personally)
 Claudia conoce al tío de Teresa.
 Claudia know Teresa´s uncle. (She has met
him.)
 ¿Conoces a Marisel?
 Do you know Marisel? (Have you met her?)
Use of CONOCER - #2
 CONOCER + place/thing= to be
familiar with places and things
 Teresa no conoce Buenos Aires.
 Teresa doesn’t know Buenos Aires.
 ¿Conoces el libro Cien años de
soledad por García Márquez?
 Do you know (are you familiar with) the
book One Hundred Years of Solitude, by
García Márquez?
Summary
Both mean “to know”
Both have irregular “yo”
forms
Only CONOCER takes the
personal “a”
 CONOCER is CLOSER!