Wiktionary

saber

See also: Saber

English

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Pronunciation

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Noun

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saber (plural sabers)

  1. (American spelling) Alternative form of sabre
  2. Clipping of lightsaber

Verb

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saber (third-person singular simple present sabers, present participle sabering, simple past and past participle sabered)

  1. (American spelling) Alternative form of sabre

Translations

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Anagrams

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Asturian

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Etymology

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Inherited from Latin sapere (“taste, know”).

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /saˈbeɾ/, [saˈβ̞eɾ]

Verb

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saber

  1. to know
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Catalan

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Inherited from Old Catalan saber, from Vulgar Latin *sapēre, from Latin sapĕre (“taste, know”).

Pronunciation

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Verb

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saber (first-person singular present sé, first-person singular preterite sabí, past participle sabut)

  1. to know (a fact), to have knowledge
  2. to know how to

Conjugation

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    Conjugation of saber (second conjugation, irregular)
infinitive saber
gerund sabent
past participle masculine feminine
singular sabut sabuda
plural sabuts sabudes
person singular plural
first second third first second third
indicative jo tu ell/ella
vostè 		nosaltres
nós 		vosaltres
vós 		ells/elles
vostès
present sé saps sap sabem sabeu saben
imperfect sabia sabies sabia sabíem sabíeu sabien
future sabré sabràs sabrà sabrem sabreu sabran
preterite sabí saberes sabé sabérem sabéreu saberen
conditional sabria sabries sabria sabríem sabríeu sabrien
subjunctive jo tu ell/ella
vostè 		nosaltres
nós 		vosaltres
vós 		ells/elles
vostès
present sàpiga sàpigues sàpiga sapiguem sapigueu sàpiguen
imperfect sabés sabessis sabés sabéssim sabéssiu sabessin
imperative — tu vostè nosaltres vosaltres
vós 		vostès
affirmative — sàpiga sàpiga sapiguem sapigueu sàpiguen
negative (no) — no sàpigues no sàpiga no sapiguem no sapigueu no sàpiguen

Derived terms

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Noun

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saber m (plural sabers)

  1. knowledge, know-how

See also

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References

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Galician

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Etymology

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From Old Galician-Portuguese saber, from Latin sapere (“taste, know”).

Pronunciation

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Verb

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saber (first-person singular present sei, first-person singular preterite souben, past participle sabido)
saber (first-person singular present sei, first-person singular preterite soubem or soube, past participle sabido, reintegrationist norm)

  1. to know (a fact)
  2. to know how to do (something)
    Val máis saber que ter (proverb)
    Better to know than to have
  3. to find out
  4. (intransitive) to taste, to have a taste
    Sabe ben! ― It tastes good!
  5. (pronominal) to like, enjoy
    A min sábeme o caldo. ― I like broth / I like this broth.

Usage notes

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Like Portuguese and Spanish, Galician has two different verbs that are usually translated to English as “to know”. The verb saber relates to factual knowledge and skills. In contrast, the verb coñecer relates to familiarity with people or places.

Conjugation

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Currently, it is not known where the first person singular form that is currently used for the present indicative, "sei", originates from.

    Conjugation of saber (irregular)
Singular Plural
First-person
(eu) 		Second-person
(ti) 		Third-person
(el / ela / Vde.) 		First-person
(nós) 		Second-person
(vós) 		Third-person
(eles / elas / Vdes.)
Infinitive
Impersonal saber
Personal saber saberes saber sabermos saberdes saberen
Gerund
sabendo
Past participle
Masculine sabido sabidos
Feminine sabida sabidas
Indicative
Present sei sabes sabe sabemos sabedes saben
Imperfect sabía sabías sabía sabiamos sabiades sabían
Preterite souben soubeches soubo soubemos soubestes souberon
Pluperfect soubera souberas soubera souberamos souberades souberan
Future saberei saberás saberá saberemos saberedes saberán
Conditional sabería saberías sabería saberiamos saberiades saberían
Subjunctive
Present saiba saibas saiba saibamos saibades saiban
Imperfect soubese soubeses soubese soubésemos soubésedes soubesen
Future souber souberes souber soubermos souberdes souberen
Imperative
Affirmative sabe saiba saibamos sabede saiban
Negative (non) non saibas non saiba non saibamos non saibades non saiban
    Reintegrated conjugation of saber (irregular) (See Appendix:Reintegrationism)
Singular Plural
First-person
(eu) 		Second-person
(ti / tu) 		Third-person
(ele / ela / você) 		First-person
(nós) 		Second-person
(vós) 		Third-person
(eles / elas / vocês)
Infinitive
Impersonal saber
Personal saber saberes saber sabermos saberdes saberem
Gerund
sabendo
Past participle
Masculine sabido sabidos
Feminine sabida sabidas
Indicative
Present sei sabes sabe sabemos sabedes, sabeis sabem
Imperfect sabia sabias sabia sabíamos sabíades, sabíeis, sabíais1 sabiam
Preterite soubem, soube soubeste, soubeche1 soubo, soube soubemos soubestes soubérom, souberam
Pluperfect soubera souberas soubera soubéramos soubérades, soubéreis, soubérais1 souberam
Future saberei saberás saberá saberemos saberedes, sabereis saberám, saberão
Conditional saberia saberias saberia saberíamos saberíades, saberíeis, saberíais1 saberiam
Subjunctive
Present saiba saibas saiba saibamos saibades, saibais saibam
Imperfect soubesse soubesses soubesse soubéssemos soubéssedes, soubésseis soubessem
Future souber souberes souber soubermos souberdes souberem
Imperative
Affirmative sabe saiba saibamos sabede, sabei saibam
Negative (nom) nom saibas nom saiba nom saibamos nom saibades, nom saibais nom saibam

1Less recommended.

Derived terms

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See also

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Noun

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saber m (plural saberes)

  1. knowledge, know-how

References

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Occitan

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Inherited from Old Occitan saber, from Vulgar Latin *sapēre, from Latin sapĕre (“taste, know”).

Pronunciation

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Verb

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saber

  1. to know
    Antonym: ignorar

Conjugation

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      Lengadocian (Central Occitan)
simple compound
infinitive saber aver sauput
gerund sabent use gerund of avent + past participle
past participle sauput —
person singular plural
first second third first second third
indicative ieu tu el nosautres vosautres eles
present sabi, sai sabes, sas sap sabèm sabètz sabon
imperfect sabiái sabiás sabiá sabiam sabiatz sabián
preterite saupèri saupères saupèt saupèrem saupèretz saupèron
future sauprai saupràs sauprà sauprem saupretz saupràn
conditional saupriái saupriás saupriá saupriam saupriatz sauprián
conditional 2nd form1
compound
tenses 		present perfect use the present tense of aver + past participle
pluperfect use the imperfect tense of aver + past participle
past anterior use the preterite tense of aver + past participle
future perfect use the future tense of aver + past participle
conditional perfect use the conditional tense of aver + past participle
subjunctive que ieu que tu que el que nosautres que vosautres que eles
present sàpia sàpias sàpia sapiam sapiatz sàpian
imperfect saupèsse saupèsses saupèsse saupèssem saupèssetz saupèsson
compound
tenses 		past use the present subjunctive of aver + past participle
pluperfect use the imperfect subjunctive of aver + past participle
imperative — tu — nosautres vosautres —
sap sapiam sabètz 1Now chiefly obsolete, still in use in some Limousin and Vivaro-Alpin dialects
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Old Occitan

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Etymology

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Inherited from Vulgar Latin *sapēre, from Latin sapĕre (“taste, know”).

Verb

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saber

  1. to taste (have a certain taste)
  2. to know

Noun

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saber m (oblique plural sabers, nominative singular sabers, nominative plural saber)

  1. knowledge
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Descendants

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  • Catalan: saber

References

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Portuguese

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Etymology

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From Old Galician-Portuguese saber, from Latin sapere (“taste, know”).

The 1SG reflects an original */ˈsajᵒ/, in common with other Romance languages, of uncertain origin. The present subjunctive forms show consonant metathesis (sapiām > */ˈsajpa/ > Pt. saiba).

Pronunciation

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  • (Portugal) IPA(key): /sɐˈbeɾ/ [sɐˈβeɾ]
    • (Southern Portugal) IPA(key): /sɐˈbe.ɾi/ [sɐˈβe.ɾi]

  • (Rural Central Brazil) IPA(key): /sɐˈbe(ɹ)/
  • Hyphenation: sa‧ber

Verb

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saber (first-person singular present sei, first-person singular preterite soube, past participle sabido)

  1. to know
    2. (transitive or intransitive) to be aware, to know [with direct object ‘a fact’ or que (+ indicative clause when positive or subjunctive clause when negated) ‘that ...’ or indirect question]
      Perguntaram-me a resposta, mas eu não sabia. ― They asked me the answer, but I didn’t know.
      Sei que é verdade. ― I know it’s true.
    4. (transitive) to be aware of a value or piece of information
      • 2003, J. K. Rowling, Lia Wyler, Harry Potter e a Ordem da Fênix, Rocco, page 46:
        Olho-Tonto, você sabe que isso é nojento, não sabe?
        Mad-Eye, you know that this is disgusting, don't you?
      Eu sei qual é a capital da Assíria. ― I know what is the capital of Assyria.
      Ele sabe duzentos algarismos do número neperiano. ― He knows two hundred digits of Euler’s number.
    5. (catenative) to know how [with infinitive ‘to do something’]
      Não sei fazer isso, mas ela sabe. ― I don’t know how to do this, but she knows.
      Sabes falar russo? ― Can you speak Russian?
  3. (intransitive) to know; to have heard [with de or sobre ‘about something’]
    Soube da explosão que houve no centro? ― Have you heard about the downtown explosion?
  4. (intransitive, Portugal) to taste of/like (to have the same taste as) [with a ‘something’]
    Um bom vinho sabe a carvalho. ― A good wine tastes like oak.
  5. (intransitive, Portugal) to have a pleasant taste
    Como sabe esse vinho! ― How good does this wine taste!
  6. (transitive) to learn (to become informed of something)
    Eles querem saber mais sobre o projeto. ― They want to learn more about the project.

Usage notes

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  • saber does not mean to know in the sense of knowing someone (who they are); for that, conhecer should be used instead.
  • Although nonstandard, some speakers change the conjugation for the first person singular depending on the meaning of the verb: it is conjugated as sei if it means to know, but as saibo if it means to taste. Aside from this case, all the other verb forms are homonymous.

Conjugation

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    Conjugation of saber (irregular) (See Appendix:Portuguese verbs)
Singular Plural
First-person
(eu) 		Second-person
(tu) 		Third-person
(ele / ela / você) 		First-person
(nós) 		Second-person
(vós) 		Third-person
(eles / elas / vocês)
Infinitive
Impersonal saber
Personal saber saberes saber sabermos saberdes saberem
Gerund
sabendo
Past participle
Masculine sabido sabidos
Feminine sabida sabidas
Indicative
Present sei sabes sabe sabemos sabeis sabem
Imperfect sabia sabias sabia sabíamos sabíeis sabiam
Preterite soube soubeste soube soubemos soubestes souberam
Pluperfect soubera souberas soubera soubéramos soubéreis souberam
Future saberei saberás saberá saberemos sabereis saberão
Conditional saberia saberias saberia saberíamos saberíeis saberiam
Subjunctive
Present saiba saibas saiba saibamos saibais saibam
Imperfect soubesse soubesses soubesse soubéssemos soubésseis soubessem
Future souber souberes souber soubermos souberdes souberem
Imperative
Affirmative sabe saiba saibamos sabei saibam
Negative (não) não saibas não saiba não saibamos não saibais não saibam

Quotations

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For quotations using this term, see Citations:saber.

Synonyms

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Descendants

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Noun

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saber m (plural saberes)

  1. knowledge; lore (intellectual understanding)
    Synonyms: conhecimento, sabedoria

Derived terms

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Spanish

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Etymology

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Inherited from Latin sapere (“taste, know”). Compare English savvy, savor.

The 1SG reflects an original */ˈsajo/, in common with other Romance languages, of uncertain origin. The present subjunctive forms show consonant metathesis (sapiām > */ˈsajpa/ > Sp. sepa).

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /saˈbeɾ/ [saˈβ̞eɾ]
  • Audio:(file)
  • Rhymes: -eɾ
  • Syllabification: sa‧ber

Verb

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saber (first-person singular present sé, first-person singular preterite supe, past participle sabido)

  1. to know, to understand (a fact)
    Sé que volverá. ― I know it'll come back.
    Lo siguiente que sé... ― Next thing I know...
    que yo sepa ― as far as I know
    Si tú supieras... ― If you knew...
  2. to know how to do something
    Sabe hablar español.
    He knows how to speak Spanish.
  3. (in the preterite tense) to find out, to learn
  4. to taste (i.e. have a flavour)
    Sabe a pollo. ― It tastes like chicken.
    Estos plátanos saben bien. ― These bananas taste good.
  5. to realize, to know (i.e. recognize)
    El hombre no sabe lo talentoso que su hijo es.
    The man doesn't realize how talented his son is.
  6. to tell, to know (i.e. to discern or distinguish if something is the case)
    Siempre es difícil saber si me mientes.
    It's always hard to tell if you're lying to me.
  7. (informal) to figure out
    Todavía estamos tratando de saber qué acaba de pasar.
    We're still trying to figure out what just happened.
  8. to hear from [with de ‘someone’]
    No he sabido nada de ella en meses.
    I haven't heard from her in months.
  9. to hear of, to hear about [with de ‘something’]
  10. to learn, to find out, to know [with de ‘about something’]
  11. (reflexive) to be known
    Ya se sabe que uno de los factores que aceleran esta enfermedad es el estrés.
    It is known that one of the factors that speeds up this disease is stress.
  12. (reflexive) to know (extremely well)
    He oído que te sabes todas las líneas de la película de memoria.
    I heard that you know all the lines of the movie by heart.
  13. (colloquial, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Argentina, Ecuador, Peru) Synonym of soler (in several senses: (auxiliary) to be accustomed to; (imperfect) to used to)
    Synonyms: soler, acostumbrar

Conjugation

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The irregular conjugation of saber is the source of two common grammatical errors among Spanish speakers, both of which concern the first-person singular present indicative form:

  • The form sabo is frequent among non-native speakers learning the language, and to a lesser extent also among children who are native speakers[1] (e.g. *(yo) sabo hablar inglés bien ― I know how to speak English well). The correct conjugated form is sé (and thus the above example should read (yo) sé hablar inglés bien), and fluent Spanish speakers generally do not make this mistake; this gave rise to the humorous phrase yo no sabo in Spanish and to the derogatory term no sabo kid in English, both terms referring to the lack of fluency in the language.
  • The form sepo is sometimes found with the meaning "to taste" (e.g. *(yo) sepo a azúcar ― I taste like sugar), even among fluent Spanish speakers. This usage is proscribed by the Royal Spanish Academy, who maintain that the conjugation of saber is the same regardless of meaning, thus making sé the correct form in this context as well (i.e., (yo) sé a azúcar).
    Conjugation of saber (irregular) (See Appendix:Spanish verbs)
infinitive saber
gerund sabiendo
past participle masculine feminine
singular sabido sabida
plural sabidos sabidas
singular plural
1st person 2nd person 3rd person 1st person 2nd person 3rd person
indicative yo tú
vos 		él/ella/ello
usted 		nosotros
nosotras 		vosotros
vosotras 		ellos/ellas
ustedes
present sé sabestú
sabésvos 		sabe sabemos sabéis saben
imperfect sabía sabías sabía sabíamos sabíais sabían
preterite supe supiste supo supimos supisteis supieron
future sabré sabrás sabrá sabremos sabréis sabrán
conditional sabría sabrías sabría sabríamos sabríais sabrían
subjunctive yo tú
vos 		él/ella/ello
usted 		nosotros
nosotras 		vosotros
vosotras 		ellos/ellas
ustedes
present sepa sepastú
sepásvos2 		sepa sepamos sepáis sepan
imperfect
(ra) 		supiera supieras supiera supiéramos supierais supieran
imperfect
(se) 		supiese supieses supiese supiésemos supieseis supiesen
future1 supiere supieres supiere supiéremos supiereis supieren
imperative — tú
vos 		usted nosotros
nosotras 		vosotros
vosotras 		ustedes
affirmative sabetú
sabévos 		sepa sepamos sabed sepan
negative no sepas no sepa no sepamos no sepáis no sepan

1Mostly obsolete, now mainly used in legal language.
2Argentine and Uruguayan voseo prefers the tú form for the present subjunctive.

    Selected combined forms of saber (irregular)

These forms are generated automatically and may not actually be used. Pronoun usage varies by region.

singular plural
1st person 2nd person 3rd person 1st person 2nd person 3rd person
with infinitive saber
dative saberme saberte saberle, saberse sabernos saberos saberles, saberse
accusative saberme saberte saberlo, saberla, saberse sabernos saberos saberlos, saberlas, saberse
with gerund sabiendo
dative sabiéndome sabiéndote sabiéndole, sabiéndose sabiéndonos sabiéndoos sabiéndoles, sabiéndose
accusative sabiéndome sabiéndote sabiéndolo, sabiéndola, sabiéndose sabiéndonos sabiéndoos sabiéndolos, sabiéndolas, sabiéndose
with informal second-person singular tú imperative sabe
dative sábeme sábete sábele sábenos not used sábeles
accusative sábeme sábete sábelo, sábela sábenos not used sábelos, sábelas
with informal second-person singular vos imperative sabé
dative sabeme sabete sabele sabenos not used sabeles
accusative sabeme sabete sabelo, sabela sabenos not used sabelos, sabelas
with formal second-person singular imperative sepa
dative sépame not used sépale, sépase sépanos not used sépales
accusative sépame not used sépalo, sépala, sépase sépanos not used sépalos, sépalas
with first-person plural imperative sepamos
dative not used sepámoste sepámosle sepámonos sepámoos sepámosles
accusative not used sepámoste sepámoslo, sepámosla sepámonos sepámoos sepámoslos, sepámoslas
with informal second-person plural imperative sabed
dative sabedme not used sabedle sabednos sabeos sabedles
accusative sabedme not used sabedlo, sabedla sabednos sabeos sabedlos, sabedlas
with formal second-person plural imperative sepan
dative sépanme not used sépanle sépannos not used sépanles, sépanse
accusative sépanme not used sépanlo, sépanla sépannos not used sépanlos, sépanlas, sépanse

Derived terms

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References

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  1. ^ Kathryn Henn-Reinke (2012) “Riverview Elementary School, San Diego, California: Education in Spanish, English, and Mandarin Chinese”, in Considering Trilingual Education (Routledge Research in Education), New York, N.Y., London: Routledge, →ISBN, page 149: “The correct response is <<Yo sé>>, but the error in generalization of this irregular verb is also typical of children who are native speakers of Spanish.”

Noun

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saber m (plural saberes)

  1. knowledge

Derived terms

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Descendants

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  • → English: savvy (via some creole or pidgin)
  • → Ido: savar
  • → Sabir: sabir

Further reading

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