saber means: to know
Click to see all conjugation charts of saber in every tense

In this conjugation lesson we are going to learn how to conjugate the verb saber in the Presente tense of the Indicativo mood. It means we will see step by step how to create and translate forms of each grammatical person.

This lesson is specifically about the saber verb conjugation. For a general overview of all the Simple Tenses conjugation check the Simple Tenses Conjugation Chart.

You may also see this Video Presentation on how to conjugate verbs in Presente. It’s embedded below, but using the above link you will get more detailed information on conjugation in this tense as well as explanation of exceptions and special cases.

How to translate Presente to English

Note that the phrases in English provided below next to each conjugation are not direct translations from Spanish to English. They are usually the closest general equivalents. The example differences are:

• In Spanish conjugation, there is the form usted in the third person singular. But this person does not translate to the English third person singular. It translates to the so called formal you and uses the inflected form which is most often represented as he/she/it in English conjugation charts.
• Similar situation happens in the third person plural, where ustedes translates to the English plural formal you but uses the form which corresponds to the they form in English.
• Tenses are used differently in Spanish and English, so the actual translation should always take into account the context and focus on translating the meaning, not just words.
• In both languages each verb may have multiple meanings and not every meaning translates directly to the other language. Here also, the context and focusing on the particular meaning helps to create the most accurate translation.

Note the timeline

The ability to correctly locate the desired position on the timeline is a crucial skill for proper choice of tenses. So note the timeline in our lessons and visualize it while speaking, listening, writing and reading. After a bit practice you will be able to select the right tense to use much easier.

Step by step instructions

Presente belongs to the simple tenses group, which means that all of the conjugated forms are one word long. There are also compound (compuesto) tenses in the Spanish language, where each conjugated form consists of two words.The verb saber has an almost entirely regular conjugation in the Presente tense of the Indicativo mood. An exception is the first person singular, which has an irregular form. It means that the other persons simply follow the general rules for this conjugation group (-er) without further exceptions, spelling corrections and the like. The basis for this conjugation is the stem of the verb, so we have to start by splitting the infinitive into a stem and an ending. It’s easy to do. Simply remove two letters from the end of the infinitive and you have the ending — one of -ar, -er or -ir. What’s left is the stem. So for our verb:

• the stem is: sab-
• and the ending is: -er

Use the stem sab- in each person as the basis for conjugations, the common prefix that each of the forms begins with. Next, add to this regular stem the endings specific to each person. Analyze the image showing all six endings. Note the colors and shapes of the letters. It should help you find patterns and make it easier to remember these endings.Each grammatical person has a specific ending in each of the three conjugation groups -ar, -er, -ir. The first person singular is irregular in this tense and needs to be remembered. It is sé:

• yo sé – I know

Add the regular ending -es for the second person singular to create sabes:

• tú sabes – you know

Again add the regular ending -e for the third person singular to create sabe:

• él sabe – he knows
• ella sabe – she knows
• usted sabe – (formal) you know

Like in the previous case add the regular ending -emos for the first person plural to create sabemos:

• nosotros sabemos – we know
• nosotras sabemos – (feminine) we know

And one more time add the regular ending -éis for the second person plural to create sabéis:

• vosotros sabéis – (plural) you know
• vosotras sabéis – (feminine, plural) you know

As before add the regular ending -en for the third person plural to create saben:

• ellos saben – they know
• ellas saben – (feminine) they know
• ustedes saben – (formal, plural) you know

This is it! The conjugation is now finished. That’s the final result:

yo	sé	I know
tú	sabes	you know
él/ella/usted	sabe	he/she/it knows
nosotros/nosotras	sabemos	we know
vosotros/vosotras	sabéis	you know
ellos/ellas/ustedes	saben	they know

Click to see all conjugation charts of saber in every tense
But do not end your session yet – it’s important to repeat and practice the material in order to remember it. Check below for and next steps.

Example sentences

Next Steps to Perfection To practice this conjugation and test your skills try this Conjugation Exercise or the Memory Game To see other conjugation lessons for this verb choose another tense: PretéritoImperfectoCondicionalFuturoPretérito Perfecto CompuestoPretérito PluscuamperfectoFuturo PerfectoCondicional PerfectoPretérito Perfecto Compuesto (subjuntivo)Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto A (subjuntivo)Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto B (subjuntivo)Futuro Perfecto (subjuntivo)  For exercises and examples related to saber visit our Exercise section To see conjugation charts in all tenses for saber visit the Conjugator To explore other learning materials visit the Study section

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