Learn Spanish (Latin America): No sé cómo usar ese cincel eléctrico. - I don't know how to use that electric chisel.

No sé cómo usar ese cincel eléctrico.

I don't know how to use that electric chisel.

Breakdown of No sé cómo usar ese cincel eléctrico.

Questions & Answers about No sé cómo usar ese cincel eléctrico.

Since this lesson is about translating "how" to qué tan, could I say qué tan usar here?

No, you must use cómo. The phrase qué tan is strictly used before an adjective or an adverb to ask about degree or extent (like qué tan grande for "how big"). When "how" refers to the method or manner of doing an action, you always use cómo.

Why does cómo have an accent mark here if the sentence isn't a question?

The word cómo is acting as an indirect question. When interrogative words (like qué, cuándo, or dónde) introduce an embedded question—often after phrases like no sé (I don't know) or me pregunto (I wonder)—they keep their written accent.

How can I remember the gender of cincel?

You can spot that it is masculine because it is matched with the masculine words ese (that) and eléctrico (electric). As a general rule, nouns ending in -l tend to be masculine in Spanish, though there are a few common exceptions like la miel (honey) and la sal (salt).

If I wanted to drop the noun and just say "I don't know how to use it", how would that change the sentence?