SAVOIR vs CONNAÎTRE – How to Say TO KNOW in French

SAVOIR vs CONNAÎTRE. Easy, right?

Hey, today we’ll have a look at two verbs that are used in French to say that you know someone or something. They both correspond to some extent to the English verb TO KNOW, but they’re not interchangeable. The two verbs are SAVOIR and CONNAÎTRE.

SAVOIR

Let’s start with the verb SAVOIR. Before we see how it’s actually used, let’s have a look at its conjugation. The verb is irregular so the only thing we can do is just memorize the forms.

Conjugation

Here are the forms in Present tense (Présent):

Here are the forms in Imperfect tense (Imparfait):

Here are the forms in Future Simple tense (Futur simple):

The past participle of the verb savoir is su. And here are the forms in Simple Past tense (Passé composé):

Meaning

Now that we know all the irregular forms of the verb, how do we actually use it? Well, the basic meaning of the verb SAVOIR is TO KNOW, TO HAVE KNOWLEDGE OF STH. Here are some examples:

Elle savait où nous gardions l’argent.

She knew where we kept the money.

Je sais où vous habitez.

I know where you live.

Il ne saura pas ce qu’il faut faire.

He won’t know what to do.

Nous savons que tu es riche.

We know that you are rich.

When used with another infinitive, the verb SAVOIR is used to say that you know how to do something. It more or less corresponds to the English CAN or TO BE ABLE.

Paul ne sait pas nager.

Paul can’t swim.

Elles savent conduire.

They can drive.

CONNAÎTRE

What about the other verb, CONNAÎTRE? Just like before, let’s start with the conjugation.

Conjugation

Here are the forms in Present tense (Présent):

Here are the forms in Imperfect tense (Imparfait):

Here are the forms in Future Simple tense (Futur simple):

The past participle of the verb connaître is connu. And here are the forms in Simple Past tense (Passé simple):

Meaning

This verb is used to say that we know someone or a place or an idea or a thing. You should use it to say that you are FAMILIAR or ACQUAINTED WITH STH.

Je ne connais pas du tout cette ville.

I don’t know this city at all.

Je la connais de nom.

I know it by name.

Nous ne connaissons personne ici.

We don’t know anybody here.

Elle connaît les livres de Zola.

She knows Zola’s books.

Vous connaissiez cet édifice.

You knew this building.

INFO

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