Sapere Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Italian

sapere — to know — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Italian. It is a non-reflexive, irregular -ere verb, and it comes up in conversation, at work and at home. It means to know a fact, or to know how to do something, and it is different from conoscere, which means to know a person or a place. Its present and passato remoto are irregular, so learn the io and lui forms carefully. On this page you will find sapere in real sentences, grouped by meaning and tense, two short texts that show it in context, the mistakes learners actually make with it, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Start with the examples, say them aloud, and then test yourself. The full conjugation tables are on the sapere conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the sapere passato prossimo tense page.

Example sentences with sapere

In the present tense

  • “Io so la risposta ogni giorno.” — “I know the answer”
  • “Tu sai la risposta ogni giorno.” — “You know the answer”
  • “Lui sa la risposta ogni giorno.” — “He knows the answer”
  • “Noi sappiamo la risposta ogni giorno.” — “We know the answer”
  • “Voi sapete la risposta ogni giorno.” — “You know the answer”
  • “Loro sanno la risposta ogni giorno.” — “They know the answer”

In the passato prossimo

  • “Io ho saputo la risposta questa settimana.” — “I have known the answer”
  • “Tu hai saputo la risposta questa settimana.” — “You have known the answer”
  • “Lui ha saputo la risposta questa settimana.” — “He has known the answer”
  • “Noi abbiamo saputo la risposta questa settimana.” — “We have known the answer”
  • “Voi avete saputo la risposta questa settimana.” — “You have known the answer”
  • “Loro hanno saputo la risposta questa settimana.” — “They have known the answer”

In other tenses

The same verb in the imperfect, the future, the conditional, the present subjunctive and the imperative — the tenses that complete the picture. All forms come from the verified tables.

  • “Io sapevo la risposta una volta.” — “I used to know the answer”
  • “Tu saprai la risposta domani.” — “You will know the answer”
  • “Lui saprebbe la risposta un giorno.” — “He would know the answer”
  • “È importante che noi sappiamo la risposta.” — “It is important that we know the answer”
  • “Sappi la risposta!” — “Know the answer!”

How sapere is used

The first thing to know about sapere is its core meaning: to know. It means to know a fact, or to know how to do something, and it is different from conoscere, which means to know a person or a place. Its present and passato remoto are irregular, so learn the io and lui forms carefully. In everyday speech it appears most often in the present and the passato prossimo, the two tenses on this page, because most of what we say is either what we do every day or what we have just done. Learn those two tenses first and the rest of the conjugation becomes a matter of adding forms one at a time. The second thing to know is the company sapere keeps. The present io form is so, and it pairs naturally with the time words ogni giorno and sempre for habits, and with adesso for what is happening right now. The passato prossimo io form is ho saputo, and it pairs with ieri and questa settimana for finished actions. When you learn a verb form, learn its time words with it, and choosing the tense becomes automatic. The third thing to know is what sapere does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after io you need so, never sapere. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the passato prossimo is ho saputo, built with avere, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle saputo is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Sapere in context

Io so la risposta ogni giorno. Tu sai la risposta ogni giorno. Lui sa la risposta ogni giorno. Noi sappiamo la risposta ogni giorno. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of sapere is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — so, sai, sa, sappiamo — while the meaning stays the same: to know. Io ho saputo la risposta questa settimana. Tu hai saputo la risposta questa settimana. Lui ha saputo la risposta questa settimana. Noi abbiamo saputo la risposta questa settimana. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the passato prossimo of sapere appears constantly: a finished action, a precise moment, and the story goes on. Compare these sentences with the present ones above: the verb changes tense, but the basic meaning — to know — does not change. That is the difference between a habit and a finished event.

Common mistakes

1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Io sapere la risposta.”

✓ Right: “Io so la risposta ogni giorno.”

The infinitive sapere never takes a subject. After io you need the conjugated present form so.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Io sai la risposta.”

✓ Right: “Io so la risposta ogni giorno.”

sai is the tu form, not the io form. The io form is so — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Io so la risposta ieri.”

✓ Right: “Io ho saputo la risposta questa settimana.”

Ieri points to the past, so use the passato prossimo ho saputo here, not the present so.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Io sono saputo la risposta.”

✓ Right: “Io ho saputo la risposta questa settimana.”

sapere takes avere in the passato prossimo. The io form is ho saputo — the other auxiliary never belongs with this verb.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on sapere across the tenses. Answers with explanations follow each question.

  1. What is the tu form of sapere in the Present indicative?

    • A) so
    • B) sai
    • C) sa
    • D) sappiamo

  2. What is the io form of sapere in the Present perfect (passato prossimo)?

    • A) hai saputo
    • B) ha saputo
    • C) ho saputo
    • D) abbiamo saputo

  3. What is the lui/lei form of sapere in the Imperfect?

    • A) sapevo
    • B) sapevi
    • C) sapevamo
    • D) sapeva

  4. What is the noi form of sapere in the Future?

    • A) sapremo
    • B) saprò
    • C) saprai
    • D) saprà

  5. What is the tu form of sapere in the Conditional?

    • A) saprei
    • B) sapresti
    • C) saprebbe
    • D) sapremmo

  6. What is the io form of sapere in the Passato remoto?

    • A) sapesti
    • B) seppe
    • C) seppi
    • D) sapemmo

  7. What is the noi form of sapere in the Present subjunctive?

    • A) sappia
    • B) sappiate
    • C) sappiano
    • D) sappiamo

  8. What is the gerund of sapere?

    • A) sapendo
    • B) saputo
    • C) sapere
    • D) so

  9. What is the past participle of sapere?

    • A) sapendo
    • B) saputo
    • C) sapere
    • D) so

  10. What does sapere mean in English?

  • A) to be
  • B) to have
  • C) to know
  • D) to do, to make

Answer key

  1. B) sai — the correct form is sai. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) ho saputo — the correct form is ho saputo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) sapeva — the correct form is sapeva. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) sapremo — the correct form is sapremo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) sapresti — the correct form is sapresti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) seppi — the correct form is seppi. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) sappiamo — the correct form is sappiamo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) sapendo — the correct form is sapendo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) saputo — the correct form is saputo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to know — the correct form is to know. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does sapere mean in English?

sapere means “to know”. You use it whenever you talk about to know in Italian, in the present, the past and the future.

Is sapere regular or irregular?

sapere is irregular. sapere is irregular in present, passato-remoto, future, conditional, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, present-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative — learn those forms as a set.

What are the gerund and past participle of sapere?

The gerund is sapendo and the past participle is saputo. The perfect tenses use avere + saputo.

Where can I see the full conjugation of sapere?

On the sapere conjugation page — every tense, every person, with tables. The sapere passato prossimo tense page goes deeper into its most practised tense.

Pronunciation

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for sapere, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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