Portuguese Tricky Verbs: Saber vs Conseguir vs Poder vs Conhecer

Many learners of Portuguese who rely on English as a reference point struggle with these verbs: Saber, Conseguir, Poder, and Conhecer. Why? Because a single English verb, “can,” can have any of the abovementioned Portuguese counterparts depending on the context. Similarly, “know” in English might translate to either Saber or Conhecer in Portuguese.

In other words, Portuguese has more nuanced verbs for these concepts than English, making them trickier to master. But fear not! This guide will provide contextual clues to help you choose the right verb.

Keep in mind that these distinctions can be subtle, and sometimes these verbs are even interchangeable. This explanation simplifies what can be more complex usage patterns.

To make things clear and easy to follow, we’ll use a single conversation to illustrate these verb differences. Let’s dive in!

Related Video Lessons

Saber vs. Conseguir vs. Poder / Can in English

When in English we use Can, in Portuguese that could be either Saber, Conseguir or Poder.

Saber – Skills and Know-how

We use Saber to talk about skills in general:

Joel: Sabes tocar guitarra?
Tiago: Sim, sei (tocar guitarra).
Joel: Can you play guitar? (Do you know how to play guitar?)
Tiago: Yeah, I can play guitar. (Yeah, I know how to play guitar.)

Granted, more often than not, in this kind of situation, we leave out our auxiliary Saber:

Joel: Tocas guitarra? 
Tiago:  Sim, toco (guitarra). 
Joel: Do you play guitar?
Tiago: Yes, I do.

Conseguir – Achievement