2.16: Saber y conocer
- Page ID
- 210686
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Rosa and Patricia are in the entryway of a youth hostel. Read their conversation, then complete the exercises that follow.
Rosa: | Hola, Patricia, ¿qué estás leyendo? |
Patricia: | Es un guía de la ciudad. ¿Sabes dónde están las oficinas de información turística? |
Rosa: | La verdad es que no sé dónde están. Sólo estoy visitando Oviedo y no conozco la ciudad bien. |
Patricia: | Vamos a ver… el guía dice que las oficinas están en la Plaza de la Constitución. ¿Quieres venir conmigo? |
Rosa: | Bueno, los otros de mi grupo están durmiendo una siesta pero yo no estoy cansada. ¿Qué hora es? Mi cita con Carlos en la Plaza del Fontán es a las tres y media. |
Patricia: | Son las dos ahora, y la Plaza del Fontán está cerca de la Plaza de la Constitución, mira el mapa. ¡La coincidencia es perfecta! Y mientras estamos caminando allí, puedes explicarme cómo conoces a este Carlos. |
Rosa: | ¡Ay, Patricia! Realmente sabes improvisar los planes. |
Usos de "saber" y "conocer"
To know vs. To know…. How do you know?
In Spanish, we have two verbs that translate to “to know” in English; however, each is used in specific situations and they are not interchangeable.
Saber | Conocer |
---|---|
Saber is used when talking about knowing facts, skills, and information. It is used to discuss learned knowledge. We also use it followed by an infinitive to communicate “to know how to (swim, draw, cook, etc.)”. If you have a question word in your sentence, it’s a good clue that saber should be used. |
Conocer is used when talking about knowing people, places, and things (like movies, books, art, etc.) that someone is familiar with. It is used to discuss experiential knowledge. When using conocer to talk about knowing a person, it is always followed by the personal "a" (example: Conozco a la madre de mi amigo). |
Shortcut question: Did I learn it? | Shortcut question: Did I live it? |
Facts ¿Sabes que los delfines no son peces? ¡Son mamíferos! Information Mi asistente personal sabe mi horario mejor que yo. Skills Sonia y su hermano saben álgebra bien porque su madre es profesora de matemáticas. How-to Yo no sé tocar el piano. |
People ¿Conoces a mi amiga Julia? Es muy buena gente. Places Mi familia conoce la costa de Oregón bien porque siempre pasamos las vacaciones de verano en Cannon Beach. Things Mi amiga Kendra conoce todas las obras de Shakespeare porque ella es profesora de literatura británica. |
Recall that in the preterite, "saber" and "conocer" no longer translate as "to know":
- Saber: Supe means "I found out (fact/information)".
- Conocer: Conocí means "I met/became acquainted with (person/location) for the first time".
Videolección
By clicking on the video below, you can hear a video lesson about the difference between saber and conocer.
¡A practicar!
Lectura. Read the paragraph below, focusing on reading for fluency. Then, read out loud with a partner, alternating sentences and focusing on instances of Saber and Conocer. Finally, discuss what you understand and go back to decipher parts that are unclear to you both. Answer the reflection questions and be prepared to discuss as a class.
¿Sabías que la estación de Atocha es la estación de trenes más grande de Madrid? Sirve a noventa millones de pasajeros cada año. La estación es un lugar maravilloso, lleno de vida con arquitectura impresionante y un invernadero tropical. Cada año, miles de turistas pasan por sus puertas para verla cuando llegan a Madrid por tren o cuando visitan el Museo del Prado que está al otro lado de la calle. La pintura famosa de Picasso, Guernica, está en el Museo del Prado.
1. ¿Conoces Madrid?
2. ¿Conoces la Guernica u otras obras de Picasso?
3. ¿Qué sabes de Picasso?
4. ¿Qué sabes de Madrid?
Bingo Humano. Use Saber or Conocer to ask questions about what your classmates know. When asked, answer using Saber or Conocer as well. If you get a negative answer from someone, you may ask that person another question until you get an affirmative response. Then, write their name in the blank. You may only use the name of each classmate once. Try to get as many “BINGO’s” as you can in the time given.
This page remixed and adapted from 7.2: Saber versus conocer by Erin Huebener (Libro Libre), licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0, and from 11.10: En contexto- Saber y conocer and 11.12: Ejercicios- Saber y conocer by Erica Brown, Alejandra Escudero, María Cristina Montoya, & Elizabeth Small (SUNY Oneonta), licensed under CC BY 4.0.