“Savoir” – Conjugation of the French Verb

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The French language is known for its intricate verb conjugations, and one of the most important and commonly used verbs in French is “savoir.” “Savoir” translates to “to know” in English and is a versatile verb that has several meanings and uses in different contexts. In this article, we will explore the conjugation of the French verb “savoir” in various tenses and moods, shedding light on its forms and how it is used.

 

Present Tense

In the present tense, “savoir” is conjugated as follows:

– Je sais (I know)
– Tu sais (You know, informal singular)
– Il/elle/on sait (He/she/one knows)
– Nous savons (We know)
– Vous savez (You know, formal singular or plural)
– Ils/elles savent (They know)

“Je sais” and “tu sais” are the first and second-person singular forms, while “il/elle/on sait” is the third-person singular form. “Nous savons” and “vous savez” are the first and second-person plural forms, and “ils/elles savent” is the third-person plural form.

 

Past Tenses

1. Passé Composé (Present Perfect)

To express actions that have been completed in the past, the passé composé tense is used. In this tense, “savoir” is conjugated with the auxiliary verb “avoir” and the past participle “su.”

– J'ai su (I knew)
– Tu as su (You knew, informal singular)
– Il/elle/on a su (He/she/one knew)
– Nous avons su (We knew)
– Vous avez su (You knew, formal singular or plural)
– Ils/elles ont su (They knew)

 

2. Imparfait (Imperfect)

The imperfect tense is used to describe ongoing or habitual actions in the past. To conjugate “savoir” in the imperfect tense, you add the following endings to the verb's stem:

– Je savais (I knew)
– Tu savais (You knew, informal singular)
– Il/elle/on savait (He/she/one knew)
– Nous savions (We knew)
– Vous saviez (You knew, formal singular or plural)
– Ils/elles savaient (They knew)

 

Conditional Mood

The conditional mood is used to express actions that would happen under certain conditions. To conjugate “savoir” in the conditional mood, you add the following endings to the verb's infinitive form:

– Je saurais (I would know)
– Tu saurais (You would know, informal singular)
– Il/elle/on saurait (He/she/one would know)
– Nous saurions (We would know)
– Vous sauriez (You would know, formal singular or plural)
– Ils/elles sauraient (They would know)

 

Future Tense

The future tense is used to talk about actions that will happen in the future. To conjugate “savoir” in the future tense, you add the following endings to the verb's infinitive form:

– Je saurai (I will know)
– Tu sauras (You will know, informal singular)
– Il/elle/on saura (He/she/one will know)
– Nous saurons (We will know)
– Vous saurez (You will know, formal singular or plural)
– Ils/elles sauront (They will know)

 

Subjunctive Mood

The subjunctive mood is used to express doubt, desire, or uncertainty. To conjugate “savoir” in the subjunctive mood, you use the following forms:

– Que je sache (That I know)
– Que tu saches (That you know, informal singular)
– Qu'il/elle/on sache (That he/she/one knows)
– Que nous sachions (That we know)
– Que vous sachiez (That you know, formal singular or plural)
– Qu'ils/elles sachent (That they know)

 

10 example sentences with the word “savoir”

Here are 10 example sentences with the word “savoir” in different grammatical tenses:

  1. Je sais parler français. (I know how to speak French.) – Present Tense
  2. Tu savais la réponse hier. (You knew the answer yesterday.) – Imperfect Tense
  3. Il saura bientôt la vérité. (He will soon know the truth.) – Future Tense
  4. Nous avons su la nouvelle hier soir. (We found out the news last night.) – Passé Composé
  5. Vous sauriez la réponse si vous demandiez. (You would know the answer if you asked.) – Conditional Mood
  6. Elles savaient que j'étais en retard. (They knew I was late.) – Imperfect Tense
  7. Que je sache, il n'a pas encore décidé. (As far as I know, he hasn't decided yet.) – Subjunctive Mood
  8. Elle saura le résultat demain. (She will know the result tomorrow.) – Future Tense
  9. Nous savions qu'il était difficile. (We knew it was difficult.) – Imperfect Tense
  10. Ils savaient que vous viendriez. (They knew you would come.) – Imperfect Tense

These sentences demonstrate the usage of “savoir” in various tenses and moods, highlighting its versatility in the French language.