Saber Conjugation in Spanish

Introduction

“Saber” is the Spanish verb that translates to “to know” in English, typically used to convey knowledge or skills. For example: “I speak Spanish” or “I know all the capital cities in Europe”. It can also refer to taste, such as in “The cake tastes like chocolate and orange”. It’s important not to confuse “saber” with “conocer”, another verb for “to know” but used in different contexts.

Item	Spanish	English
Infinitive	saber	to know (things)
Past participle	sabido	known
Gerund	sabiendo	knowing

Indicative Tenses of Saber

Present Tense Conjugation of Saber

The present tense in Spanish, or “El Presente,” is used to describe actions, events, or states happening right now or in the near future. It is also used for facts and statements generally accepted as true. For example, “sé español”, means “I know Spanish.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	sé	I know
Tú	sabes	you know
Ella / Él / Usted	sabe	s/he knows, you (formal) know
Nosotras / Nosotros	sabemos	we know
Vosotras / Vosotros	sabéis	you (plural) know
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	saben	they know, you (plural formal) know

Examples:

1. Yo sé la respuesta.
2. Tú sabes cocinar muy bien.
3. Ella sabe cómo llegar a la estación.

Indicative Preterite of “Saber”

The Indicative Preterite tense for the verb “saber” is employed to refer to actions that were completed in the past at a distinct time point. For instance, “supe español” translates to “I knew Spanish.”

In Spanish, this tense is known as “El Pretérito Indefinido.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	supe	I knew
Tú	supiste	you knew
Ella / Él / Usted	supo	s/he knew, you (formal) knew
Nosotras / Nosotros	supimos	we knew
Vosotras / Vosotros	supisteis	you (plural) knew
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	supieron	they knew, you (plural formal) knew

Examples in Spanish:

• Ayer supe la verdad.
• ¿Supiste tú la respuesta correcta?
• Ellos no supieron que venir a la fiesta.

Indicative Imperfect for “Saber”

The Indicative Imperfect form of “saber” is employed to talk about actions in the past that occurred regularly or to describe past habits. A sentence like “sabía español” translates to “I used to know Spanish.”

In Spanish, this tense is referred to as “El Pretérito Imperfecto.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	sabía	I used to know
Tú	sabías	you used to know
Ella / Él / Usted	sabía	s/he used to know, you (formal) used to know
Nosotras / Nosotros	sabíamos	we used to know
Vosotras / Vosotros	sabíais	you (plural) used to know
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	sabían	they used to know, you (plural formal) used to know

Examples:

1. Yo sabía leer rápido cuando era niño.
2. Tú sabías todos los trucos de ese juego.
3. Ellos sabían cómo arreglar el coche.

Saber in the Present Progressive

The Present Progressive tense of “saber” is employed to describe an action that is happening continuously or at this very moment. For instance, “estoy sabiendo español,” translates to “I am knowing Spanish.”

In Spanish, the Present Progressive is referred to as “El Presente Progresivo.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	estoy sabiendo	I am knowing
Tú	estás sabiendo	you are knowing
Ella / Él / Usted	está sabiendo	s/he is knowing, you (formal) are knowing
Nosotras / Nosotros	estamos sabiendo	we are knowing
Vosotras / Vosotros	estáis sabiendo	you (plural) are knowing
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	están sabiendo	they are knowing, you (plural formal) are knowing

Examples:

1. Yo estoy sabiendo sobre la historia de España.
2. Nosotros estamos sabiendo la verdad del caso.
3. Ellas están sabiendo preparar la comida tradicional.

Knowing in Informal Future Tense

The informal future tense in Spanish is utilized to indicate an action that will be happening in the near future. An example of this would be “voy a saber español,” which translates to “I am going to know Spanish.”

In Spanish, this form is referred to as “El Futuro Próximo.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	voy a saber	I am going to know
Tú	vas a saber	you are going to know
Ella / Él / Usted	va a saber	s/he is going to know, you (formal) are going to know
Nosotras / Nosotros	vamos a saber	we are going to know
Vosotras / Vosotros	vais a saber	you (plural) are going to know
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	van a saber	they are going to know, you (plural formal) are going to know

Examples:

1. Yo voy a saber la respuesta mañana.
2. ¿Tú vas a saber cómo llegar a la fiesta?
3. Ellos van a saber el secreto pronto.

Future Tense of “Saber” in the Indicative

The Future Tense in the Indicative Mood for “saber” is used when describing actions or events that will occur in the future. For instance, “sabré español” translates to “I will know Spanish.”

In Spanish, the Future Tense in the Indicative Mood is referred to as “El Futuro Simple.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	sabré	I will know
Tú	sabrás	you will know
Ella / Él / Usted	sabrá	s/he will know, you (formal) will know
Nosotras / Nosotros	sabremos	we will know
Vosotras / Vosotros	sabréis	you (plural) will know
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	sabrán	they will know, you (plural formal) will know

Examples:

1. Yo sabré la respuesta mañana.
2. Tú sabrás qué hacer en esa situación.
3. Ellos sabrán la verdad muy pronto.

Saber in the Conditional Mood

The Conditional Mood of saber is used to express potential future actions, hypothetical situations, and probabilities. For instance, “sabría español” means “I would know Spanish.”

In Spanish, the Conditional Mood is referred to as “El Condicional Simple.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	sabría	I would know
Tú	sabrías	you would know
Ella / Él / Usted	sabría	s/he would know, you (formal) would know
Nosotras / Nosotros	sabríamos	we would know
Vosotras / Vosotros	sabríais	you (plural) would know
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	sabrían	they would know, you (plural formal) would know

Examples:

1. Yo sabría la respuesta si estudiara más.
2. ¿Tú sabrías qué decir en esa situación?
3. Ellos sabrían qué hacer en caso de emergencia.

Saber in the Indicative Present Perfect

The Present Perfect tense (Indicativo Pretérito Perfecto) of “saber” is employed to express actions that started in the past and continue into the present or that have been completed recently. For example, “he sabido español,” translates to “I have known Spanish.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	he sabido	I have known
Tú	has sabido	you have known
Ella / Él / Usted	ha sabido	s/he has known, you (formal) have known
Nosotras / Nosotros	hemos sabido	we have known
Vosotras / Vosotros	habéis sabido	you (plural) have known
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	han sabido	they have known, you (plural formal) have known

Examples:

1. Yo he sabido la respuesta desde la semana pasada.
2. Ellos han sabido cómo resolver el problema.
3. Nosotros hemos sabido la verdad todo este tiempo.

Saber in the Indicative Pluperfect Tense

The Pluperfect Indicative of “saber” is utilized to discuss actions that occurred before another past event. For example, “había sabido español,” which means “I had known Spanish.”

In Spanish, the Pluperfect Indicative is referred to as “El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	había sabido	I had known
Tú	habías sabido	you had known
Ella / Él / Usted	había sabido	s/he had known, you (formal) had known
Nosotras / Nosotros	habíamos sabido	we had known
Vosotras / Vosotros	habíais sabido	you (plural) had known
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	habían sabido	they had known, you (plural formal) had known

Examples:

1. Yo había sabido la verdad antes de que me lo dijeras.
2. Tú habías sabido cómo resolver el problema antes de la reunión.
3. Habíamos sabido la respuesta correcta antes del examen.

Future Perfect Tense of ‘Saber’ in Spanish

The Future Perfect tense of the verb ‘saber’ is used to describe an action that will have been completed at some point in the future. For example, “habré sabido español” translates to “I will have known Spanish”.

In Spanish, this tense is referred to as “El Futuro Perfecto”.

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	habré sabido	I will have known
Tú	habrás sabido	You will have known
Ella / Él / Usted	habrá sabido	S/he will have known, you (formal) will have known
Nosotras / Nosotros	habremos sabido	We will have known
Vosotras / Vosotros	habréis sabido	You (plural) will have known
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	habrán sabido	They will have known, you (plural formal) will have known

Example Sentences:

1. Para el año próximo, habré sabido toda la gramática española.
2. Tú habrás sabido la verdad antes de que termine el día.
3. Dentro de una semana, él habrá sabido todos los detalles del proyecto.

Saber in the Indicative Conditional Perfect

The Conditional Perfect in the indicative mood for the verb “saber” is utilized to describe actions that would have occurred in the past if certain conditions had been met. For instance, “habría sabido español” translates to “I would have known Spanish.”

In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional Perfect is referred to as “El Condicional Perfecto.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	habría sabido	I would have known
Tú	habrías sabido	you would have known
Ella / Él / Usted	habría sabido	s/he would have known, you (formal) would have known
Nosotras / Nosotros	habríamos sabido	we would have known
Vosotras / Vosotros	habríais sabido	you (plural) would have known
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	habrían sabido	they would have known, you (plural formal) would have known

Examples:

• Si hubiera estudiado más, habría sabido todas las respuestas del examen.
• De haber tenido más tiempo, habríamos sabido cómo resolver el problema.
• Si lo hubieras mencionado antes, habrían sabido la verdad.

Subjunctive Present of ‘Saber’

The Subjunctive Present is employed to discuss uncertain situations or to express emotions such as wishes, desires, and hopes. Unlike the indicative mood, it highlights the uncertainty of the events being mentioned. An example is “sepa,” which translates to “I know.”

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present is referred to as “El Presente de Subjuntivo”.

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	sepa	I know
Tú	sepas	you know
Ella / Él / Usted	sepa	s/he knows, you (formal) know
Nosotras / Nosotros	sepamos	we know
Vosotras / Vosotros	sepáis	you (plural) know
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	sepan	they know, you (plural formal) know

Examples:

• Espero que yo sepa la respuesta a tiempo.
• Es importante que tú sepas lo que está pasando.
• Ojalá ellos sepan llegar a la fiesta sin problemas.

Using Saber in the Subjunctive Imperfect

The Subjunctive Imperfect is utilized to talk about hypothetical or uncertain events in the past or express emotional opinions about past occurrences. For example, “supiera,” which translates to “I knew.”

In Spanish, this tense is referred to as “El Imperfecto Subjuntivo.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	supiera	I knew
Tú	supieras	you knew
Ella / Él / Usted	supiera	s/he knew, you (formal) knew
Nosotras / Nosotros	supiéramos	we knew
Vosotras / Vosotros	supierais	you (plural) knew
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	supieran	they knew, you (plural formal) knew

Examples in Sentences:

1. Yo esperaba que supiera la respuesta correcta.
2. Si tú supieras lo que pasó, entenderías mi decisión.
3. Nosotros no creíamos que supiéramos tanto sobre el tema.

Subjunctive Future Tense for ‘Saber’

The Future Subjunctive is used to discuss hypothetical scenarios or events that may occur in the future. For example, “supiere,” meaning “I will know.”

In Spanish, this tense is called “El Futuro de Subjuntivo.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	supiere	I will know
Tú	supieres	you will know
Ella / Él / Usted	supiere	s/he will know, you (formal) will know
Nosotras / Nosotros	supiéremos	we will know
Vosotras / Vosotros	supiereis	you (plural) will know
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	supieren	they will know, you (plural formal) will know

Examples in Spanish:

1. Si yo supiere la verdad, te la diría.

2. If I will know the truth, I would tell you.

3. Si tú supieres cómo hacerlo, podrías ayudarme.

4. If you will know how to do it, you could help me.

5. Si ellos supieren las respuestas, no tardarían tanto.

6. If they will know the answers, they wouldn’t take that long.

“Saber” in the Subjunctive Present Perfect

The Subjunctive Present Perfect is used to talk about past actions or events with relevance to the present or to indicate an action that will be completed by a future moment. For example, “haya sabido”, meaning “I have known”.

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present Perfect is known as “El Pretérito Perfecto de Subjuntivo”.

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	haya sabido	I have known
Tú	hayas sabido	you have known
Ella / Él / Usted	haya sabido	s/he has known, you (formal) have known
Nosotras / Nosotros	hayamos sabido	we have known
Vosotras / Vosotros	hayáis sabido	you (plural) have known
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	hayan sabido	they have known, you (plural formal) have known

Examples:

1. Es posible que yo haya sabido la respuesta correcta.
2. Dudo que tú hayas sabido lo que pasó ayer.
3. Espero que ellas hayan sabido la verdad antes de decidir.

Saber in the Subjunctive Past Perfect

The Subjunctive Past Perfect, also known as “El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo” in Spanish, is used to express actions or events that happened before other actions/events in the past, often in hypothetical or conditional contexts.

Examples:

• Si hubiera sabido la verdad, no habría tomado esa decisión.
• Ojalá hubieras sabido lo importante que era para mí.
• Si ellos hubieran sabido del problema, lo habrían resuelto a tiempo.

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	hubiera sabido	I had known
Tú	hubieras sabido	you had known
Ella / Él / Usted	hubiera sabido	s/he had known, you (formal) had known
Nosotras / Nosotros	hubiéramos sabido	we had known
Vosotras / Vosotros	hubierais sabido	you (plural) had known
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	hubieran sabido	they had known, you (plural formal) had known

Saber in the Future Perfect Subjunctive

The Future Perfect Subjunctive is used to talk about an action that will have occurred by a certain point in the future, provided a hypothetical condition is met. For example, “hubiere sabido,” meaning “I will have known.”

In Spanish, this tense is known as “El Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	hubiere sabido	I will have known
Tú	hubieres sabido	you will have known
Ella / Él / Usted	hubiere sabido	s/he will have known, you (formal) will have known
Nosotras / Nosotros	hubiéremos sabido	we will have known
Vosotras / Vosotros	hubiereis sabido	you (plural) will have known
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	hubieren sabido	they will have known, you (plural formal) will have known

Examples:

1. Espero que para entonces ya hubiere sabido la verdad.
2. Si para mañana no hubieres sabido la respuesta, estudiaremos juntos.
3. Para cuando llegues, ella ya hubiere sabido lo que pasó.

Imperative Forms of Saber

Saber in the Affirmative Command Form

The Affirmative Command Form is used to give direct instructions or commands in Spanish. This verb form is typically used to tell someone what to do. For instance, “sepa” means “(you formal) know!”.

In Spanish, this form is referred to as “El Imperativo Afirmativo.”

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	-	-
Tú	sabe	(you) know!
Ella / Él / Usted	sepa	(you formal) know!
Nosotras / Nosotros	sepamos	let’s know!
Vosotras / Vosotros	sabed	(you all) know!
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	sepan	(you all formal) know!

Examples:

1. Tú sabe la verdad y dímela.
2. Usted sepa la información antes de actuar.
3. Vosotros sabed las reglas del juego antes de empezar.

Saber in the Imperative Negative Form

The Negative Imperative is used to instruct or command someone not to do something. For instance, “no sepa” translates to “don’t know!” when addressing someone formally.

In Spanish, the Imperative Negative is referred to as “El Imperativo Negativo”.

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	-	-
Tú	no sepas	(to you) don’t know!
Ella / Él / Usted	no sepa	(to you formal) don’t know!
Nosotras / Nosotros	no sepamos	let’s not know!
Vosotras / Vosotros	no sepáis	(to you plural) don’t know!
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	no sepan	(to you plural formal) don’t know!

Example sentences with usage

• Simplemente no sepas demasiado. Just don’t know too much.
• Por favor, no sepamos los detalles aún. Let’s not know the details yet, please.
• No sepáis nada antes de tiempo. Don’t know anything ahead of time.