Learn French: Nous savons utiliser le sonar, mais nous ne connaissons pas la fosse. - We know how to use the sonar, but we do not know the trench.

Word

Nous savons utiliser le sonar, mais nous ne connaissons pas la fosse.

Meaning

We know how to use the sonar, but we do not know the trench.

Part of speech

sentence

Pronunciation

Course

French

Lesson

Concessive clauses with subjunctive (quelque... que)

Breakdown of Nous savons utiliser le sonar, mais nous ne connaissons pas la fosse.

mais

but

nous

we / us (object pronoun)

not (used before the verb)

pas

not (used after the verb)

Questions & Answers about Nous savons utiliser le sonar, mais nous ne connaissons pas la fosse.

Why are two different verbs (savoir and connaître) used for 'to know' here?

This sentence perfectly demonstrates the difference between these two verbs! You use savoir when talking about knowing how to do something (followed by the infinitive utiliser). You use connaître when talking about being familiar with a place, person, or thing (followed by the noun la fosse).

In English we say 'know how to use'. Why is there no word for 'how' after savons?

In French, the verb savoir followed directly by an infinitive inherently means 'to know how to' do that action. If you try to translate word-for-word and say nous savons comment utiliser, it sounds unnatural to a French speaker.

What does la fosse refer to here?

Une fosse generally translates to a pit, hole, or trench. Because the sentence mentions le sonar, it is referring to an underwater oceanic trench, such as the Mariana Trench (la fosse des Mariannes).

Could I use savoir if I have memorized facts about the trench?

You would still use connaître when directly targeting the noun la fosse, because you are stating familiarity with a place. However, you would use savoir if you followed it with a fact-based clause, such as nous savons où est la fosse (we know where the trench is).