saber
English Edit
Pronunciation Edit
- (US, Canada) IPA(key): /ˈseɪ.bɚ/
- (UK) IPA(key): /ˈseɪ.bə(ɹ)/
Audio (Southern England) (file) - Rhymes: -eɪbə(ɹ)
- Hyphenation: sa‧ber
Noun Edit
saber (plural sabers)
- (American spelling) Alternative form of sabre
Verb Edit
saber (third-person singular simple present sabers, present participle sabering, simple past and past participle sabered)
- (American spelling) Alternative form of sabre
Translations Edit
Anagrams Edit
Asturian Edit
Etymology Edit
Inherited from Latin sapere (“taste, know”).
Pronunciation Edit
Verb Edit
saber
- to know
Related terms Edit
Catalan Edit
Alternative forms Edit
Etymology Edit
Inherited from Old Catalan saber, from Vulgar Latin *sapēre, from Latin sapĕre (“taste, know”).
Pronunciation Edit
Verb Edit
saber (first-person singular present sé, past participle sabut)
Conjugation Edit
infinitive | saber | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
present participle | sabent | ||||||
past participle | masculine | feminine | |||||
singular | sabut | sabuda | |||||
plural | sabuts | sabudes | |||||
person | singular | plural | |||||
first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
indicative | jo | tu | ell/ella vostè |
nosaltres nós |
vosaltres vós |
ells/elles vostès | |
present | sé | saps | sap | sabem | sabeu | saben | |
imperfect | sabia | sabies | sabia | sabíem | sabíeu | sabien | |
future | sabré | sabràs | sabrà | sabrem | sabreu | sabran | |
preterite | sabí | saberes | sabé | sabérem | sabéreu | saberen | |
conditional | sabria | sabries | sabria | sabríem | sabríeu | sabrien | |
subjunctive | jo | tu | ell/ella vostè |
nosaltres nós |
vosaltres vós |
ells/elles vostès | |
present | sàpiga | sàpigues | sàpiga | sapiguem | sapigueu | sàpiguen | |
imperfect | sabés | sabessis | sabés | sabéssim | sabéssiu | sabessin | |
imperative | — | tu | vostè | nosaltres | vosaltres vós |
vostès | |
— | sàpigues | sàpiga | sapiguem | sapigueu | sàpiguen |
Derived terms Edit
Related terms Edit
Noun Edit
saber m (plural sabers)
See also Edit
- conèixer (“to be familiar with”)
References Edit
- “saber” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
- “saber”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2023
- “saber” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
- “saber” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
Galician Edit
Etymology Edit
From Old Galician-Portuguese saber, from Latin sapere (“taste, know”).
Pronunciation Edit
Verb Edit
saber (first-person singular present sei, first-person singular preterite souben, past participle sabido)
- to know (a fact)
- to know how to do (something)
- Val máis saber que ter (proverb)
- Better to know than to have
- to find out
- (intransitive) to taste, to have a taste
- Sabe ben! ― It tastes good!
- (takes a reflexive pronoun) to like, enjoy
- A min sábeme o caldo. ― I like broth / I like this broth.
- first-person singular personal infinitive of saber
- third-person singular personal infinitive of saber
Usage notes Edit
Like Portuguese and Spanish, Galician has two different verbs that are usually translated to English as “to know”. The verb saber relates to factual knowledge and skills. In contrast, the verb coñecer relates to familiarity with people or places.
Conjugation Edit
Currently, it is not known where the first person singular form that is currently used for the present indicative, "sei", originates from.
infinitive | saber | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
gerund | sabendo | ||||||
past participle | singular | plural | |||||
masculine | sabido | sabidos | |||||
feminine | sabida | sabidas | |||||
person | singular | plural | |||||
first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
indicative | eu | ti | el / ela / Vde. | nós | vós | eles / elas / Vdes. | |
present | sei | sabes | sabe | sabemos | sabedes | saben | |
imperfect | sabía | sabías | sabía | sabiamos | sabiades | sabían | |
preterite | souben | soubeches | soubo | soubemos | soubestes | souberon | |
pluperfect | soubera | souberas | soubera | souberamos | souberades | souberan | |
future | saberei | saberás | saberá | saberemos | saberedes | saberán | |
conditional | sabería | saberías | sabería | saberiamos | saberiades | saberían | |
subjunctive | eu | ti | el / ela / Vde. | nós | vós | eles / elas / Vdes. | |
present | saiba | saibas | saiba | saibamos | saibades | saiban | |
preterite | soubese | soubeses | soubese | soubésemos | soubésedes | soubesen | |
future | souber | souberes | souber | soubermos | souberdes | souberen | |
imperative | — | ti | Vde. | nós | vós | Vdes. | |
affirmative | — | sabe | saiba | saibamos | sabede | saiban | |
negative | — | saibas | saiba | saibamos | saibades | saiban | |
personal infinitive | eu | ti | el / ela / Vde. | nós | vós | eles / elas / Vdes. | |
saber | saberes | saber | sabermos | saberdes | saberen |
Derived terms Edit
Related terms Edit
See also Edit
Noun Edit
saber m (plural saberes)
References Edit
- “saber” in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval, SLI - ILGA 2006–2022.
- “saber” in Xavier Varela Barreiro & Xavier Gómez Guinovart: Corpus Xelmírez - Corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval. SLI / Grupo TALG / ILG, 2006–2018.
- “saber” in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega, SLI - ILGA 2006–2013.
- “saber” in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega. Santiago: ILG.
- “saber” in Álvarez, Rosario (coord.): Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués, Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega.
Occitan Edit
Alternative forms Edit
Etymology Edit
Inherited from Old Occitan saber, from Vulgar Latin *sapēre, from Latin sapĕre (“taste, know”).
Pronunciation Edit
Audio (Béarn) (file)
Verb Edit
saber
Conjugation Edit
simple | compound | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
infinitive | saber | aver sauput | |||||
gerund | sabent | use gerund of avent + past participle | |||||
past participle | sauput | — | |||||
person | singular | plural | |||||
first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
indicative | ieu | tu | el | nosautres | vosautres | eles | |
present | sabi, sai | sabes, sas | sap | sabèm | sabètz | sabon | |
imperfect | sabiái | sabiás | sabiá | sabiam | sabiatz | sabián | |
preterite | saupèri | saupères | saupèt | saupèrem | saupèretz | saupèron | |
future | sauprai | saupràs | sauprà | sauprem | saupretz | saupràn | |
conditional | saupriái | saupriás | saupriá | saupriam | saupriatz | sauprián | |
conditional 2nd form1 | {{{49}}} | {{{50}}} | {{{51}}} | {{{52}}} | {{{53}}} | {{{54}}} | |
compound tenses |
present perfect | use the present tense of aver + past participle | |||||
pluperfect | use the imperfect tense of aver + past participle | ||||||
past anterior | use the preterite tense of aver + past participle | ||||||
future perfect | use the future tense of aver + past participle | ||||||
conditional perfect | use the conditional tense of aver + past participle | ||||||
subjunctive | que ieu | que tu | que el | que nosautres | que vosautres | que eles | |
present | sàpia | sàpias | sàpia | sapiam | sapiatz | sàpian | |
imperfect | saupèsse | saupèsses | saupèsse | saupèssem | saupèssetz | saupèsson | |
compound tenses |
past | use the present subjunctive of aver + past participle | |||||
pluperfect | use the imperfect subjunctive of aver + past participle | ||||||
imperative | — | tu | — | nosautres | vosautres | — | |
sap | sapiam | sabètz | 1Now chiefly obsolete, still in use in some Limousin and Vivaro-Alpin dialects | ||||
Related terms Edit
Old Occitan Edit
Etymology Edit
Inherited from Vulgar Latin *sapēre, from Latin sapĕre (“taste, know”).
Verb Edit
saber
Noun Edit
saber m (oblique plural sabers, nominative singular sabers, nominative plural saber)
Related terms Edit
- sabor (noun)
Descendants Edit
- Catalan: saber
References Edit
- Walther von Wartburg (1928–2002), “sapere”, in Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch (in German), volume 11: S–Si, page 193
Portuguese Edit
Etymology Edit
From Old Galician-Portuguese saber, from Latin sapere (“taste, know”).
The 1SG reflects an original */ˈsajᵒ/, in common with other Romance languages, of uncertain origin. The present subjunctive forms show consonant metathesis (sapiām > */ˈsajpa/ > Pt. saiba).
Pronunciation Edit
Verb Edit
saber (first-person singular present sei, first-person singular preterite soube, past participle sabido)
- to know
- (intransitive) to be aware of a fact
- Perguntaram-me a resposta, mas eu não sabia. ― They asked me the answer, but I didn’t know.
- Sei que é verdade. ― I know it’s true.
- (transitive) to be aware of a value or piece of information
- 2003, J. K. Rowling, Lia Wyler, Harry Potter e a Ordem da Fênix, Rocco, page 46:
- Olho-Tonto, você sabe que isso é nojento, não sabe?
- Mad-Eye, you know that this is disgusting, don't you?
- Eu sei qual é a capital da Assíria. ― I know what is the capital of Assyria.
- Ele sabe duzentos algarismos do número neperiano. ― He knows two hundred digits of Euler’s number.
- (auxiliary with a verb in the impersonal infinitive) to know how to do something
- Não sei fazer isso, mas ela sabe. ― I don’t know how to do this, but she knows.
- Sabes falar russo? ― Can you speak Russian?
- (intransitive) to be aware of a fact
- (transitive with de or sobre) to know about; to have heard about
- Soube da explosão que houve no centro? ― Have you heard about the downtown explosion?
- (Portugal) (transitive with a) to taste of (to have the same taste as)
- Um bom vinho sabe a carvalho. ― A good wine tastes like oak.
- (Portugal) to have a pleasant taste
- Como sabe esse vinho! ― How good does this wine taste!
- to learn (to become informed of something)
- Eles querem saber mais sobre o projeto. ― They want to learn more about the project.
Usage notes Edit
- saber does not mean to know in the sense of knowing someone (who they are); for that, conhecer should be used instead.
- although nonstandard, some speakers change the conjugation for the first person singular depending on the meaning of the verb: it is conjugated as sei if it means to know, but as saibo if it means to taste. Aside from this case, all the other verb forms are homonymous.
Conjugation Edit
Singular | Plural | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
First-person (eu) |
Second-person (tu) |
Third-person (ele / ela / você) |
First-person (nós) |
Second-person (vós) |
Third-person (eles / elas / vocês) | |
Infinitive | ||||||
Impersonal | saber | |||||
Personal | saber | saberes | saber | sabermos | saberdes | saberem |
Gerund | ||||||
sabendo | ||||||
Past participle | ||||||
Masculine | sabido | sabidos | ||||
Feminine | sabida | sabidas | ||||
Indicative | ||||||
Present | sei | sabes | sabe | sabemos | sabeis | sabem |
Imperfect | sabia | sabias | sabia | sabíamos | sabíeis | sabiam |
Preterite | soube | soubeste | soube | soubemos | soubestes | souberam |
Pluperfect | soubera | souberas | soubera | soubéramos | soubéreis | souberam |
Future | saberei | saberás | saberá | saberemos | sabereis | saberão |
Conditional | ||||||
saberia | saberias | saberia | saberíamos | saberíeis | saberiam | |
Subjunctive | ||||||
Present | saiba | saibas | saiba | saibamos | saibais | saibam |
Imperfect | soubesse | soubesses | soubesse | soubéssemos | soubésseis | soubessem |
Future | souber | souberes | souber | soubermos | souberdes | souberem |
Imperative | ||||||
Affirmative | sabe | saiba | saibamos | sabei | saibam | |
Negative (não) | não saibas | não saiba | não saibamos | não saibais | não saibam |
Quotations Edit
For quotations using this term, see Citations:saber.
Synonyms Edit
Descendants Edit
Noun Edit
saber m (plural saberes)
- knowledge; lore (intellectual understanding)
- Synonyms: conhecimento, sabedoria
Derived terms Edit
Related terms Edit
Spanish Edit
Etymology Edit
Inherited from Latin sapere (“taste, know”). Compare English savvy, savor.
The 1SG reflects an original */ˈsajᵒ/, in common with other Romance languages, of uncertain origin. The present subjunctive forms show consonant metathesis (sapiām > */ˈsajpa/ > Sp. sepa).
Pronunciation Edit
Verb Edit
saber (first-person singular present sé, first-person singular preterite supe, past participle sabido)
- to know (a fact), to wit
- Sé que volverá. ― I know that it'll come back.
- Lo siguiente que sé... ― Next thing I know...
- que yo sepa ― as far as I know
- Si tu supieras... ― If you knew...
- to know how to do something
- Sabe hablar español.
- He knows how to speak Spanish.
- (in the preterite tense) to find out, to learn
- to taste
- Sabe a pollo. ― It tastes like chicken.
- to realize, to know (e.g. recognize)
- El hombre no sabe lo talentoso que su hijo es.
- The man doesn't realize how talented his son is.
- to tell, to know (i.e. to discern or distinguish if something is the case)
- Siempre es difícil saber si me mientes.
- It's always hard to tell if you're lying to me.
- (informal) to figure out
- Todavía estamos tratando de saber qué acaba de pasar.
- We're still trying to figure out what just happened.
- to hear from (+ de)
- No he sabido nada de ella en meses.
- I haven't heard from her in months.
- to hear of, to hear about, (+ de)
- to learn of, to learn about, to find out about, to know about (+ de)
- (reflexive) to be known
- Ya se sabe que uno de los factores que aceleran esta enfermedad es el estrés.
- It is known that one of the factors that speeds up this disease is stress.
- (reflexive) to know (extremely well)
- He oído que te sabes todas las líneas de la película de memoria.
- I heard that you know all the lines of the movie by heart.
Conjugation Edit
infinitive | saber | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
gerund | sabiendo | ||||||
past participle | masculine | feminine | |||||
singular | sabido | sabida | |||||
plural | sabidos | sabidas | |||||
singular | plural | ||||||
1st person | 2nd person | 3rd person | 1st person | 2nd person | 3rd person | ||
indicative | yo | tú vos |
él/ella/ello usted |
nosotros nosotras |
vosotros vosotras |
ellos/ellas ustedes | |
present | sé | sabestú sabésvos |
sabe | sabemos | sabéis | saben | |
imperfect | sabía | sabías | sabía | sabíamos | sabíais | sabían | |
preterite | supe | supiste | supo | supimos | supisteis | supieron | |
future | sabré | sabrás | sabrá | sabremos | sabréis | sabrán | |
conditional | sabría | sabrías | sabría | sabríamos | sabríais | sabrían | |
subjunctive | yo | tú vos |
él/ella/ello usted |
nosotros nosotras |
vosotros vosotras |
ellos/ellas ustedes | |
present | sepa | sepastú sepásvos2 |
sepa | sepamos | sepáis | sepan | |
imperfect (ra) |
supiera | supieras | supiera | supiéramos | supierais | supieran | |
imperfect (se) |
supiese | supieses | supiese | supiésemos | supieseis | supiesen | |
future1 | supiere | supieres | supiere | supiéremos | supiereis | supieren | |
imperative | — | tú vos |
usted | nosotros nosotras |
vosotros vosotras |
ustedes | |
affirmative | sabetú sabévos |
sepa | sepamos | sabed | sepan | ||
negative | no sepas | no sepa | no sepamos | no sepáis | no sepan |
These forms are generated automatically and may not actually be used. Pronoun usage varies by region.
Derived terms Edit
- a saber
- Dios sabe
- me sabe mal
- no lo sabes bien
- no saber a qué carta quedarse
- no saber de qué va la fiesta
- no saber hacer la o con un canuto
- no sé cuántos
- no te acostarás sin saber una cosa más
- nunca se sabe
- por lo poco que uno sabe
- por lo que sepa
- qué sé yo
- que yo sepa
- quién sabe
- sabe Dios
- saber de qué pie cojea
- saber más que los ratones colorados
- si lo sabré yo
- vete a saber
- yo sabré
Related terms Edit
Noun Edit
saber m (plural saberes)
Derived terms Edit
See also Edit
Further reading Edit
- “saber”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014