English know covers both possession of information and familiarity gained through experience. Catalan normally separates them: saber takes facts, answers, clauses, and learned abilities, while conèixer takes people, places, works, institutions, and fields with which someone is acquainted. The difficult cases are nouns such as resposta, problema, and tema, which can be construed either as information or as an object of familiarity.
This is not a permanent-versus-temporary contrast. You can saber a fact for life and conèixer a city for only a weekend. Choose according to what “knowing” means in the sentence and to the complement that follows.
The decision workflow
- Is the complement a clause, an answer to a question, or a piece of retrievable information? Choose saber.
- Is it an ability expressed by an infinitive? Choose saber + infinitive.
- Is the object a person, place, organization, creative work, or field with which the subject has experience? Choose conèixer.
- Does a perfective past mean “find out” or “meet”? Use saber for finding out information and conèixer for meeting or first encountering someone.
- With an abstract noun compatible with both, decide whether the focus is possession of the answer or broader familiarity with the matter.
| What is known? | Usual construction | Typical example |
|---|---|---|
| fact, datum, answer | saber + noun | saber l'adreça |
| proposition or embedded question | saber que/si/on/quan... | saber on viu |
| learned ability | saber + infinitive | saber nedar |
| person, place, work, institution | conèixer + noun phrase | conèixer la directora |
| subject or domain through experience | conèixer + noun phrase | conèixer bé la normativa |
| recognize after prior familiarity | usually reconèixer; sometimes contextual conèixer | reconèixer una veu |
Saber: facts, answers, and clauses
Use saber when knowledge can answer a question. The complement may be a noun naming information, a que-clause, a yes/no clause with si, or an embedded content question.
Sé l'adreça del taller, però no en sé l'horari.
I know the workshop's address, but I don't know its opening hours. (Specific information → saber.)
La Júlia sap que la reunió s'ha traslladat a la sala gran.
Júlia knows that the meeting has been moved to the large room. (Proposition → saber que.)
No sabem si demà circularan tots els trens.
We don't know whether all the trains will run tomorrow. (Unresolved yes/no information → saber si.)
Saps qui guarda la clau del magatzem?
Do you know who keeps the storeroom key? (Embedded question → saber qui.)
The first minimal contrast holds la directora constant but changes what is known:
Sé que la directora és fora aquesta setmana.
I know that the director is away this week. (I possess a fact about her.)
Conec la directora des que treballàvem a Reus.
I've known the director since we worked in Reus. (I am personally acquainted with her.)
English uses know in both sentences, but the Catalan complements expose two distinct relations.
Saber + infinitive: acquired ability
For knowing how to perform an action, Catalan uses saber + bare infinitive. Do not insert com merely because English can say “know how to.” Saber com... is possible when com genuinely introduces the method rather than the basic ability.
En Pau sap reparar bicicletes, però no sap apedaçar una motxilla estripada.
Pau knows how to repair bicycles, but he doesn't know how to patch a torn backpack.
Sé obrir l'arxiu; el que no sé és com recuperar la versió anterior.
I know how to open the file; what I don't know is how to recover the previous version. (Ability versus knowledge of the method.)
This is the second minimal contrast: sé obrir reports an acquired capacity; sé com recuperar introduces the manner or procedure as information. Conèixer obrir is impossible because conèixer does not select an infinitive in this function.
Conèixer: people, places, works, and domains
Use conèixer for acquaintance or familiarity grounded in contact or experience. Its direct object can be human or nonhuman. No personal preposition is added before an ordinary human direct object in the neutral construction.
Coneixes la nova pediatra del barri?
Do you know the neighborhood's new pediatrician? (Personal acquaintance → conèixer.)
Coneixem bé el Priorat perquè hi hem treballat molts estius.
We know the Priorat well because we have worked there for many summers. (Experiential familiarity with a place.)
No conec aquesta novel·la, però n'he llegit una ressenya molt bona.
I don't know this novel, but I've read a very good review of it. (Familiarity with a work.)
La tècnica coneix a fons el reglament i detectarà qualsevol incoherència.
The specialist knows the regulations thoroughly and will detect any inconsistency. (Mastery of a domain.)
A third minimal contrast distinguishes a fact from a place:
Saps on és el refugi?
Do you know where the shelter is? (Can you supply its location?)
Coneixes el refugi?
Do you know the shelter? (Have you been there or are you familiar with it?)
A fourth does the same with a literary work:
Saps qui va escriure aquesta obra?
Do you know who wrote this play? (A fact.)
Coneixes aquesta obra?
Are you familiar with this play? (The work itself.)
Finding out and meeting in the past
In a bounded past, vaig saber often means “I found out,” because the event boundary marks entry into a state of knowledge. Vaig conèixer with a person commonly means “I met.” The imperfects sabia and coneixia instead present an existing state.
Vaig saber el resultat mentre esperava l'autobús.
I found out the result while I was waiting for the bus. (Information became known.)
Vaig conèixer el meu soci actual en una assemblea del barri.
I met my current business partner at a neighborhood assembly. (First acquaintance.)
That fifth pair contrasts two beginnings. Now compare ongoing past states:
Ja sabia que el local tancava a les vuit.
I already knew that the premises closed at eight. (Existing factual knowledge.)
Ja coneixia el local perquè hi havia celebrat dos aniversaris.
I already knew the place because I had celebrated two birthdays there. (Existing familiarity.)
The aspectual distinction belongs to the tense, not to a permanent difference between the verbs. See the periphrastic past and imperfect for the full contrast.
Recognition is not simply conèixer
English recognize is normally reconèixer, especially when a present perception activates a stored memory. Conèixer de vista means “know by sight,” while conèixer algú normally means being acquainted with them. In some conversational contexts No et coneixia! means “I didn't recognize you!”, but learners should not turn that contextual use into a universal rule.
Vaig reconèixer la seva veu abans que digués el nom.
I recognized her voice before she said her name.
El conec de vista, però no ens han presentat mai.
I know him by sight, but we've never been introduced.
This sixth minimal contrast is important: recognition is an event of identification; acquaintance is a continuing relation.
Where both verbs can occur
Some information nouns allow both perspectives. Saber la resposta presents the answer as information one possesses. Conèixer la resposta also occurs, especially in (formal/academic) language, and can present the content as an object of established knowledge. Likewise, saber els detalls foregrounds recall, while conèixer els detalls often suggests fuller access or familiarity. Do not generalize that overlap to clauses: careful style avoids bureaucratic overuse of conèixer where a plain fact or embedded question calls for saber.
Saps la resposta o vols que et doni una pista?
Do you know the answer, or do you want me to give you a clue? (Immediate retrieval.)
La comissió coneix amb detall la resposta oficial del ministeri.
The committee knows the ministry's official response in detail. (formal; the response is treated as an object of established knowledge.)
With nom, the meaning changes sharply. Sé el seu nom means you can state it; conec el seu nom is possible in a formal information sense, but conec la persona means actual acquaintance. Context must identify which reading is intended.
A dialogue where the choice changes the claim
—Coneixes l'Arnau? —No personalment; només sé que treballa amb la Laia.
—Do you know Arnau? —Not personally; I only know that he works with Laia.
—I coneixes Manresa? —Sí, però no sé quin autobús va fins al campus.
—And do you know Manresa? —Yes, but I don't know which bus goes to the campus.
The first answer explicitly rejects acquaintance while accepting factual knowledge. The second speaker is familiar with the city yet lacks one practical datum. English “know” does not force this distinction; Catalan does.
Regional and register guidance
The semantic division is shared across Catalan varieties. (Regional: Valencian) writes the infinitive conéixer with an acute accent, reflecting the Valencian vowel; general Central-oriented spelling uses conèixer. Both are standard within their normative systems. Regional conjugation differences do not change complement selection. In (formal) institutional prose, conèixer una resolució/una dada can be more frequent than in everyday conversation, where saber is often the direct choice for retrievable information.
Common Mistakes
❌ Conec que demà no obriran la biblioteca.
Incorrect: a factual que-clause selects saber, not conèixer.
✅ Sé que demà no obriran la biblioteca.
I know that the library will not open tomorrow.
❌ Saps la meva cosina de Girona?
Incorrect for personal acquaintance: a person as direct object selects conèixer.
✅ Coneixes la meva cosina de Girona?
Do you know my cousin from Girona?
❌ La Bruna sap molt bé aquesta comarca.
Incorrect: experiential familiarity with a region is expressed with conèixer, not saber.
✅ La Bruna coneix bé aquesta comarca.
Bruna knows this region well.
❌ No sé conduir-hi, però conec com arribar-hi.
Incorrect for knowledge of a route or method: the embedded com-clause selects saber.
✅ No sé conduir, però sé com arribar-hi amb tren.
I can't drive, but I know how to get there by train.
Correction task
Correct Conec que l'Ona viu a Berga, però no la sé personalment. One complement is a fact and the other is a person:
Sé que l'Ona viu a Berga, però no la conec personalment.
I know that Ona lives in Berga, but I don't know her personally.
Use saber for information and executable abilities; use conèixer for acquaintance and familiarity. When a noun permits both, the intended construal—not its nearest English translation—settles the choice.
Key Takeaways
- Choose saber for facts, clauses, embedded questions, and saber + infinitive abilities.
- Choose conèixer for people, places, works, institutions, and domains known through familiarity.
- In a bounded past, vaig saber often means “I found out,” while vaig conèixer with a person often means “I met.”
- With abstract information nouns, decide whether the discourse highlights retrieval of a fact or broader access and familiarity.
Related Topics
- Conjugation of saberA1 — Complete contemporary conjugation of saber for facts, information, skills, reactions, weak pronouns, and regional forms.
- Conjugation of conèixerA2 — Complete contemporary conjugation of conèixer for acquaintance, familiarity, first meetings, expertise, and its velar stem family.
- Si and Interrogatives in Embedded QuestionsB2 — How Catalan embeds yes-no and wh-questions with si or an interrogative word, using Catalan word order, tense, and punctuation.
- Direct-Object Weak PronounsA2 — Replace definite direct objects with em, et, el, la, ens, us, els, and les, and place them correctly before a finite verb.
- Periphrastic Past versus ImperfectB1 — Choose between vaig parlar and parlava by reading event boundaries, narrative foreground, habits, completed counts, and viewpoint.
- Spanish-Looking Forms That MisleadB2 — Catch deceptive Spanish-Catalan similarities in morphology, gender, transitivity, selected prepositions, and grammatical function words.