Learn Spanish (Spain): No conozco a la señora.

No conozco a la señora.

I do not know the lady.

Breakdown of No conozco a la señora.

no / not

personal a (marks a person object)

la señora

the lady / madam (form of address)

conocer

to know / to meet (for the first time)

Questions & Answers about No conozco a la señora.

Why is there an a before la señora?

This is the personal a. In Spanish, when the direct receiver of an action is a specific person, you must put the word a right before it. Since la señora is a person, we say conozco a la señora. English does not do this, so we just translate it as 'I know the lady'.

Could I use sé instead of conozco to say 'I know'?

No, because Spanish uses two different verbs for 'to know'. You use conocer for being acquainted with people, places, or things. You use saber for knowing facts, information, or how to do something. Since you are talking about knowing a person, you must use a form of conocer.

Why does conozco have a z in it?

The verb conocer is slightly irregular in the I form (yo). Instead of dropping the ending and adding an -o to make 'conoco', you add a z to keep the pronunciation smooth, making it conozco. The rest of the present tense forms are perfectly regular, like conoces for 'you know'.

Why isn't there a word for 'I' in this sentence?

In Spanish, the verb ending usually tells you exactly who is doing the action. The -o at the end of conozco means 'I know'. Because of this, including the word for I (yo) is optional and usually left out unless you really want to emphasize it.