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SpanishConjugationPresent

Conocer (to know) · Present

By TutorLily Editorial Team · Last updated

Conocer in the Spanish present (presente) is: yo conozco, tú conoces, él/ella/usted conoce, nosotros/as conocemos, vosotros/as conocéis, ellos/ellas/ustedes conocen. The present of conocer is regular for an -er verb except for the irregular yo form 'conozco' (a 'c' becomes 'zc' before -o). This is the standard pattern for verbs ending in -cer or -cir preceded by a vowel.

conocer conjugation in the Present (Presente)
To KnowConocer
I know
yo conozco
you know
tú conoces
he/she knows
él/ella/usted conoce
we know
nosotros/as conocemos
you know
vosotros/as conocéis
they know
ellos/ellas/ustedes conocen
Examples

Conocer (to know) in context

Sentences that use conocer in the present. Tap each to hear it.

Conozco un buen restaurante por aquí.

I know a good restaurant around here.

¿Conoces a mi hermana?

Do you know my sister?

Mi madre conoce la ciudad muy bien.

My mother knows the city very well.

Conocemos a tus padres desde hace años.

We have known your parents for years.

Conocéis muchas tiendas baratas.

You know many cheap shops.

Los guías conocen todas las rutas.

The guides know all the routes.

Tip

Working with the present

Spanish uses the present tense more broadly than English does. "Estudio español" can mean "I study Spanish," "I am studying Spanish," or "I do study Spanish" — context decides. The biggest stumbling block for English speakers is the yo form of irregular verbs (hago, tengo, doy, voy, soy). Memorise those individually; the other persons usually follow regular patterns.

Questions

Frequently asked questions

How do you conjugate conocer in the present tense?
Conocer in the present is: yo conozco, tú conoces, él/ella/usted conoce, nosotros/as conocemos, vosotros/as conocéis, ellos/ellas/ustedes conocen. Only the yo form 'conozco' is irregular — the 'c' before the ending changes to 'zc' to preserve the soft 's'-like sound before the 'o'.
What's the difference between conocer and saber?
Conocer = to know by familiarity (people, places, things, films, books): 'conozco a Juan' (I know Juan), 'conozco Madrid' (I know Madrid / I've been there). Saber = to know facts, information, or how to do something: 'sé la respuesta' (I know the answer), 'sé nadar' (I know how to swim). Mixing them is one of the top-3 Spanish learner confusion points. Rule of thumb: if you can say it ('the capital of Spain'), it's saber; if you can experience it ('Madrid'), it's conocer.
Why does 'conozco' have a 'z' instead of 'c'?
Spanish orthography requires 'z' before 'o' or 'a' (and 'c' before 'e' or 'i') for the same soft sibilant sound. Conocer's stem is phonetically 'conoθ-' (or 'conos-' in Latin America); before 'e/i' it's spelled with 'c' (conoces, conocemos), but before 'o' it must switch to 'z' (conozco). The yo form's irregularity is the 'c→zc' insertion: phonetically, Spanish kept the sibilant AND inserted a hard 'k' sound, producing the cluster 'zc'. The same insertion happens for every -cer/-cir verb after a vowel: parecer → parezco, conducir → conduzco, traducir → traduzco.
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More tenses of Conocer (To Know)

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Conocer (to know) · Preterite

More verbs in present

All tenses
Conocer (to know)
present
Ser (to be)
present
Estar (to be)
present
Tener (to have)
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