Present
Presente · now, habits and facts
- yo I taste of
- tú you taste of
- usted, él, ella he/she tastes of
- nosotros we taste of
- vosotros Spain you all taste of
- ustedes, ellos, ellas they taste of
SPANISH VERB
saber a
to taste of
- Irregular -er verb
- Gerund: sabiendo a
- Past participle: sabido a
Conjugation
Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.
Past
Pretérito indefinido · finished actions
- yo I tasted of
- tú you tasted of
- usted, él, ella he/she tasted of
- nosotros we tasted of
- vosotros Spain you all tasted of
- ustedes, ellos, ellas they tasted of
Imperfect
Pretérito imperfecto · “used to” and “was …ing”
- yo I used to taste of
- tú you used to taste of
- usted, él, ella he/she used to taste of
- nosotros we used to taste of
- vosotros Spain you all used to taste of
- ustedes, ellos, ellas they used to taste of
Future
Futuro · plans and promises; in speech, “voy a hablar” is just as common
- yo I will taste of
- tú you will taste of
- usted, él, ella he/she will taste of
- nosotros we will taste of
- vosotros Spain you all will taste of
- ustedes, ellos, ellas they will taste of
Conditional
Condicional · “would”
- yo I would taste of
- tú you would taste of
- usted, él, ella he/she would taste of
- nosotros we would taste of
- vosotros Spain you all would taste of
- ustedes, ellos, ellas they would taste of
Present subjunctive
Presente de subjuntivo · wishes, doubts, “que …”
- yo (that) I taste of
- tú (that) you taste of
- usted, él, ella (that) he/she taste of
- nosotros (that) we taste of
- vosotros Spain (that) you all taste of
- ustedes, ellos, ellas (that) they taste of
Past subjunctive
Imperfecto de subjuntivo · “if I were”, “si …”
- yo (if) I tasted of
- tú (if) you tasted of
- usted, él, ella (if) he/she tasted of
- nosotros (if) we tasted of
- vosotros Spain (if) you all tasted of
- ustedes, ellos, ellas (if) they tasted of
Imperative
Imperativo · requests and orders; a negative one uses the subjunctive (no hables)
- tú taste of!
- usted taste of! (formal)
- nosotros taste of! (let’s)
- vosotros Spain taste of! (all of you)
- ustedes taste of! (all of you)
How to use saber a
One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.
-
Present
Este helado sabe a leche merengada.
This ice cream tastes of cinnamon milk.
-
Past
La paella me supo a gloria después del baño.
The paella tasted heavenly after the swim.
-
Imperfect
El agua del pueblo sabía a cloro.
The village water tasted of chlorine.
-
Future
Con tanto pimiento, todo sabrá a lo mismo.
With so much pepper, everything will taste the same.
-
Conditional
Sin el jamón, el caldo sabría a nada.
Without the ham, the broth would taste of nothing.
-
Present subjunctive
No quiero que la tarta sepa a huevo.
I don't want the cake to taste of egg.
-
Past subjunctive
Le puse menta para que supiera a verano.
I added mint so it would taste of summer.
-
Imperative
¡Sabed a qué sabe el pescaíto frito antes de opinar!
Find out what fried fish tastes like before you give an opinion!
Good to know
- "Saber a" is to taste of: sabe a limón. "Saber a poco" is to leave you wanting more: la fiesta me supo a poco.
Where you hear saber a
The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.
Spanish · Intermediate Level 3
- Este mezcal sabe a la costa de noche. This mezcal tastes like the coast at night.
- El caldo de Elena sabía a casa. Elena's soup tasted like home.
- Con canela, el café va a saber a Navidad. With cinnamon, the coffee is going to taste like Christmas.
Spanish · Advanced Level 2
- Esta torrija me sabe a infancia. This French toast tastes of childhood to me.
- La sopa de ayer sabía a limón. Yesterday's soup tasted of lemon.
- Sin sal, esto va a saber a nada. Without salt, this is going to taste of nothing.
Verbs like this one
The same pattern, on other verbs: irregular -er verb.