Saber (to know) · Preterite
By TutorLily Editorial Team · Last updated
Saber in the Spanish preterite (pretérito indefinido) is: yo supe, tú supiste, él/ella/usted supo, nosotros/as supimos, vosotros/as supisteis, ellos/ellas/ustedes supieron. The preterite of saber often means 'found out' rather than 'knew' — 'supe la verdad ayer' = 'I found out the truth yesterday'. This is one of the classic 'verbs that change meaning in the preterite' alongside conocer (met), poder (managed), and querer (tried).
| To Know | Saber |
|---|---|
| I knew | yo supe |
| you knew | tú supiste |
| he/she knew | él/ella/usted supo |
| we knew | nosotros/as supimos |
| you knew | vosotros/as supisteis |
| they knew | ellos/ellas/ustedes supieron |
Saber (to know) in context
Sentences that use saber in the preterite. Tap each to hear it.
I found out the news this morning.
When did you find out she was moving?
My brother found out the truth by chance.
We found out about the party the day before.
You knew how to handle the situation calmly.
The neighbors found out about the accident from the news.
Working with the preterite
The preterite describes a finished past action with a clear boundary — "ayer comí pizza" (yesterday I ate pizza). The key contrast is with the imperfect, which describes ongoing or repeated past actions without a defined endpoint. If you can substitute "used to" or "was doing" in English, you usually want the imperfect; if the action is one-and-done, you want the preterite. The irregular preterites (fui, hice, dije, tuve, vine, supe) are the highest-frequency in Spanish — front-load them.
Frequently asked questions
How do you conjugate saber in the preterite?
Why does 'supe' mean 'I found out' instead of 'I knew'?
What is the pretérito grave?
Practice Saber (To Know) in real conversations
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