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Spanish grammar Part of Chapter 6

CEFR A2-B1

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Test yourself (31 questions)

Saber vs Conocer: The Two Spanish Verbs for 'To Know'

By Michael McGettrick and Sergio Linares-HernandesUpdated 12 October 2026

Spanish has two verbs for "to know". is for facts and skills; is for people, places and things you are familiar with:

Quick check

Three quick questions on what you have just read. The full practice is further down.

Spot the mistake

0/3

Each sentence has the wrong verb or the wrong form. Tap it.

saberconocerthe irregular partWhat do the colours mean?
  • . - I know where he lives.
  • . - I know his house.

Saber vs conocer at a glance

saberconocerthe irregular partWhat do the colours mean?

The whole split on one screen. Everything below is detail.

What you knowVerbExample
A fact . I know it's late.
Where, when... . I don't know where it is.
A piece of data¿ ? Do you know his name?
How to do it . I can swim.
A person . I know your brother.
A place Madrid. I know Madrid.
A thing . I know that song.

The test: if the English could be "I know that", "I know how to" or "I know where", it is . If it means "I am familiar with", it is .

Saber: facts, information, know-how

is knowledge you can state or perform. It takes a clause, a question word, a noun that is a piece of information, or an infinitive:

JobSpanishEnglish
A fact + .I know that tomorrow is Monday.
Question word¿ ?Do you know what time he arrives?
A piece of data .I don't know the answer.
How to .My mother can cook.

plus an infinitive already means "know how to", so a skill needs no :

  • . - I can drive.
  • . - I know how to get there. (the way, for one particular trip)

Conocer: people, places, things

is acquaintance: you have met the person, been to the place, come across the thing. It takes a direct object, never and never an infinitive, and a person needs the personal a:

ObjectSpanishEnglish
A person .I know your brother.
Anyone¿ ?Do you know anyone here?
A place .I don't know this area.
A thing .I know that song.
A field .My father knows his job well.

With a place or person you have not met yet, means to get to know them:

  • México. - I want to see Mexico.

A field can take either verb, with a difference. says you are at home in it; plus an infinitive says you can do it:

  • . - My father knows his job inside out.
  • . - My father knows how to do his job.

The conjugations and the irregular yo

Both are regular -er verbs in the present except for yo:

Personsaberconocer
yo
, ,
,
yo conozco: a z slips in before the c

The accent on keeps it apart from the pronoun , and both can sit in one sentence:

  • Ana. - I know that she's called Ana.

Most verbs ending in -ecer or -ocer add the same z in the yo form:

  • - I seem ()
  • - I offer ()

The preterite trap: conocí and supe

In the preterite both verbs name the moment the knowing began. So is "I met" and is "I found out". For the lasting state, use the imperfect:

  • conocí a Pedro: I met him (one moment)

  • conocía a Pedro: I knew him (the state that followed)

Timeline from past to now, with now marked.

TenseSpanishEnglish
preterite Pedro .I met Pedro last year.
imperfect Pedro.I already knew Pedro.
preterite .I found out the truth yesterday.
imperfect .I already knew the truth.

So María is a first meeting, never a description of an old friendship. The full picture is on preterite vs imperfect.

Mistakes English speakers make

WrongRightWhy
. .a clause is a fact
a María. María.a person takes
. .a skill takes
¿ Madrid?¿ Madrid?a place takes
. .a person needs the personal a
Conoco a Ana. Ana.the yo form has a z
a Ana. Ana.a first meeting is preterite

What to do next

  1. Before every "know", ask: a fact or skill (), or someone or somewhere familiar ()?
  2. Do the story and sort drills below.
  3. Next, ser vs estar, the other one-English-verb, two-Spanish-verbs split.

Practise: test yourself

Complete the story

0/6

Choose the form of saber or conocer for each gap.

The new neighbour

Casi no a nadie en esta calle. que mi vecina se llama Ana, y mi madre que es médica. Ana muy bien la ciudad y cocinar de todo. Ayer la por fin, en la puerta.

Gap 1 of 6

Sort into groups

0/8

Saber or conocer? Which verb goes with each?

Tap a word, then the group it belongs in.

Spot the mistake

0/5

Each sentence has the wrong verb or the wrong form. Tap it.

Pick the right one

0/6

Choose sé (saber) or conozco (conocer).

  1. a tu hermano. (a person)

  2. No dónde vive. (information)

  3. nadar muy bien. (a skill)

  4. bien esta zona. (a place)

  5. No la respuesta. (a fact)

  6. esa canción. (familiar with it)

Fill in the blank

0/6

Fill the gap with the right form of saber or conocer. Watch the preterite: conocí means 'I met', supe means 'I found out'.

  1. ¿ a qué hora llega el tren? (tú, information) (saber, tú)

  2. No a nadie aquí. (yo, not acquainted) (conocer, yo)

  3. a Pedro el año pasado. (I met him for the first time) (conocer, preterite)

  4. la verdad ayer. (I found out the truth) (saber, preterite)

  5. Ya a Pedro; sabía que era de Madrid. (I already knew him) (conocer, imperfect)

  6. No la respuesta. (nosotros, a fact) (saber, nosotros)

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Frequently asked questions

What is the core difference between and ?
is knowing facts, information or how to do something. is being acquainted with a person, a place or a thing. (I know his number, a fact) against a (I know his brother, a person). If the English could be 'I know that...', 'I know how to...' or 'I know where...', use .
Why does 'I met' and not 'I knew'?
In the preterite, names the moment the acquaintance began, which is a first meeting. a Pedro Madrid means I met Pedro in Madrid. For the lasting state, use the imperfect: a Pedro, I knew Pedro. does the same: is 'I found out', is 'I knew'.
What are the irregular yo forms of and ?
Only the yo form of the present is irregular. gives , with an accent that keeps it apart from the pronoun . gives , with a z before the c. The rest is regular: , , ; , , . () and () follow .
Is it ' ' or ' '?
For a skill, : plus an infinitive already means 'know how to'. plus an infinitive is for knowing the way to do one particular thing: (I know how to get there), (I know how to open it).
Can 'to visit' or 'to get to know'?
Yes. With a place you have not seen yet, means to get to know it, often simply to visit it: México (I want to see Mexico). With a person, it can mean to meet: a (I want to meet your sister).