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SPANISH VERB

saber

to know (a fact)

  • #10 most used
  • Irregular -er verb
  • Gerund: sabiendo
  • Past participle: sabido

Conjugation

Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

  1. yo I know
  2. tú you know
  3. usted, él, ella he/she knows
  4. nosotros we know
  5. vosotros Spain you all know
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they know

Past

Pretérito indefinido · finished actions

  1. yo I knew
  2. tú you knew
  3. usted, él, ella he/she knew
  4. nosotros we knew
  5. vosotros Spain you all knew
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they knew

Imperfect

Pretérito imperfecto · “used to” and “was …ing”

  1. yo I used to know
  2. tú you used to know
  3. usted, él, ella he/she used to know
  4. nosotros we used to know
  5. vosotros Spain you all used to know
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they used to know

Future

Futuro · plans and promises; in speech, “voy a hablar” is just as common

  1. yo I will know
  2. tú you will know
  3. usted, él, ella he/she will know
  4. nosotros we will know
  5. vosotros Spain you all will know
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they will know

Conditional

Condicional · “would”

  1. yo I would know
  2. tú you would know
  3. usted, él, ella he/she would know
  4. nosotros we would know
  5. vosotros Spain you all would know
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they would know

Present subjunctive

Presente de subjuntivo · wishes, doubts, “que …”

  1. yo (that) I know
  2. tú (that) you know
  3. usted, él, ella (that) he/she know
  4. nosotros (that) we know
  5. vosotros Spain (that) you all know
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (that) they know

Past subjunctive

Imperfecto de subjuntivo · “if I were”, “si …”

  1. yo (if) I knew
  2. tú (if) you knew
  3. usted, él, ella (if) he/she knew
  4. nosotros (if) we knew
  5. vosotros Spain (if) you all knew
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (if) they knew

Imperative

Imperativo · requests and orders; a negative one uses the subjunctive (no hables)

  1. tú know!
  2. usted know! (formal)
  3. nosotros know! (let’s)
  4. vosotros Spain know! (all of you)
  5. ustedes know! (all of you)

How to use saber

One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.

  1. Present

    No sé dónde dejé mis lentes.

    I don't know where I left my glasses.

  2. Past

    Supimos la noticia por mi hermana.

    We found out the news from my sister.

  3. Imperfect

    No sabía que hablabas japonés.

    I didn't know you spoke Japanese.

  4. Future

    Mañana sabremos los resultados del examen.

    Tomorrow we will know the exam results.

  5. Conditional

    Sin ti, no sabría qué hacer.

    Without you, I wouldn't know what to do.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Es bueno que sepas nadar.

    It's good that you know how to swim.

  7. Past subjunctive

    Si supiera cocinar, te invitaría a cenar.

    If I knew how to cook, I would invite you to dinner.

  8. Imperative

    Sepan ustedes que la tienda cierra a las ocho.

    Be aware that the store closes at eight.

Good to know

  • Saber is to know a fact or how to do something; conocer is to know a person or a place.
  • In the pretérito, supe usually means "I found out".

Where you hear saber

The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.

Spanish · Beginner Level 1

  • No sé dónde está. I don't know where it is.
  • No supe qué decir. I didn't know what to say.
  • Mañana vas a saber todo. Tomorrow you're going to know everything.

Spanish · Beginner Level 2

  • Ella siempre sabe qué hacer. She always knows what to do.
  • No sabía eso. I didn't know that.
  • Mañana vas a saber todo. Tomorrow you're going to know everything.
20
I Like the Rain

Beginner Level 1 · No sé.

Needs a subscription 22
Do You Know How to Surf?

Beginner Level 1 · sé · sabes · ¿Sabes surfear? · Sé nadar.

Needs a subscription 27
Happy Birthday!

Beginner Level 1 · ¡No sé bailar!

Needs a subscription 24
This Is My Sister

Beginner Level 2 · saber · no sabe

Needs a subscription 27
A Night in the Cemetery

Beginner Level 2 · sabía · ya sabe

Needs a subscription 29
Always Welcome

Beginner Level 3 · no sabías

Needs a subscription 4
The Work Permit

Intermediate Level 1 · que sepa

Needs a subscription 8
Elena's Plan

Intermediate Level 1 · que sepas

Needs a subscription 15
Moving Day

Intermediate Level 1 · ya sabemos

Needs a subscription 23
The Canyon

Intermediate Level 1 · sabías · sabrías

Needs a subscription 27
It's Your Decision

Intermediate Level 1 · ojalá supiera

Needs a subscription 13
Monte Alban

Intermediate Level 2 · sabría

Needs a subscription

And 21 more lessons.

Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: irregular -er verb.