Portuguese 3.2. The Verb “To Know”: “Saber” vs. “Conhecer”

There are two verbs in Portuguese that mean “to know” in English: “saber” and “conhecer.” Knowing when to use “saber” and when to use “conhecer” should not be difficult if you understand the subtle difference between the two concepts of “knowing.”

In short, the verb “saber” is used to describe knowledge of facts, concepts, languages, skills, abilities, etc. On the other hand, the verb “conhecer” is used to describe recognition or familiarity with a person, a place, or an object, including a movie, a site, a brand, etc.

Conjugation

Below is a reminder of the present tense conjugation of both verbs:

	saber	conhecer
eu	sei	conheço
ele/ela/você	sabe	conhece
nós	sabemos	conhecemos
eles/elas/vocês	sabem	conhecem

Examples on Meaning Difference

Here are some examples that use the verbs “saber” and “conhecer” and highlight the difference:

“saber” and “conhecer” Examples	Explanation
Você sabe se há alguém dentro? Do you know if there is someone inside?	Referring to a fact (whether someone is inside or not), use “saber.”
Sabe inglês? Do you know English?	Referring to a language, use “saber.”
Ela não sabe nadar. She doesn’t know how to swim.	Referring to a skill, use “saber.”
Não sei onde há uma escola. I don’t know where there is a school.	Referring to a fact (whether a school exists nearby), use “saber.”
Não conheço muito bem a cidade. I don’t know the city very well.	Referring to recognizing a place, use “conhecer.”
Não conhecem meus pais. They don’t know my parents.	Referring to recognizing a person, use “conhecer.”
Conhece aquele filme? Do you know that movie?	Referring to recognizing a movie, use “conhecer.”

To know each other using “Conhecer”

The verb “conhecer” is used to refer to the reciprocal act of knowing each other, for example:

Nos conhecemos[1] muito bem.	We know each other very well.
Eles não se conhecem.[1]	They don’t know each other.

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[1] More on the use of reflexive verbs will be covered in detail in Level IV, Lesson 4.

Expressions that use “Saber”

The verb “saber” is common in many expressions in Portuguese, for example:

eu sei	I know	que eu saiba [1]	as far as I know
para que saiba1	just so you know	quem sabe?	who knows?
sem eu saber	without my knowledge	se eu soubesse [2]	if I’d only known

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[1] The subjunctive mood will be covered in more detail in Level IV, Lesson 6.

[2] The imperfect subjunctive tense will be covered in more detail in Level V, Lesson 5.

Use of “Saber” and “Conhecer” in the Preterite Tense

The preterite is one of the tenses used in Portuguese to describe past events. We will cover the preterite in more detail in Level IV, Lesson 2. For now, keep in mind that “saber” in the preterite form can also mean “to find out” in the past, while “conhecer” in the preterite form can also mean “to meet” in the past, for example:

Meu irmão sabia que ele estava doente.	My brother found out that I was sick.
Conheci minha esposa na faculdade.	I met my wife at university.

Next: Indefinite Adjectives & Pronouns

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