Question 1

Why does the sentence use sabéis instead of conocéis when asking about the baby's sex?

Accepted Answer

We use saber here because the speaker is asking if the parents know a specific piece of information or a fact (whether it is a boy or a girl). Conocer is used for being familiar with a person, place, or thing, which doesn't fit when asking about a piece of data like this.

Question 2

If the baby turns out to be a girl, would this change to de la bebé?

Accepted Answer

In Spain, bebé is almost always treated as a masculine noun (el bebé), regardless of the child's actual sex. While you might hear la bebé in some Latin American countries, a speaker in Spain will stick to el bebé even if they know it is a girl.

Question 3

Who is the speaker addressing with the verb form sabéis?

Accepted Answer

Sabéis is the vosotros form, which is the informal plural 'you' used in Spain. The speaker is talking to multiple people they are on familiar terms with, most likely the expecting parents.

Question 4

Could ya be placed at the end of the sentence instead of the beginning?

Accepted Answer

Yes, you could say ¿Sabéis el sexo del bebé ya? In Spanish, ya is quite flexible. Placing it at the beginning adds a bit more emphasis to the question of whether this milestone has happened yet, but both are grammatically correct and natural.

¿Ya sabéis el sexo del bebé?

Breakdown of ¿Ya sabéis el sexo del bebé?

Questions & Answers about ¿Ya sabéis el sexo del bebé?

Learn ¿Ya sabéis el sexo del bebé and more in Spanish