These sentences are a good example of the different meanings of the verb to know.
The verb “to know” have two principal meanings in Spanish:
“saber” or “conocer”
-It is used to indicate knowledge of a fact.
-It is used when we talk about knowing skills (also learned skills). For excample: driving.
-It is also used to express the ability to do something, writing the verb in the following form:
Note that often the verb saber is followed by the words que (that), qué (what), quién (who), dónde (where), cuándo (when), cuál (which), por qué (why).
- It is used when you have had some experience with a known thing or a known person
-It is used to indicate that you have a relationship with a person.
-It is also used to say that you have been or visited a place.
-It may also mean "to meet" a place, a thing or a person (for the first time).
Knowing this, let’s begin with the answers:
Mi hermano quiere ser pintor ¡pero no sabe pintar!
My brother wants to be a painter but he does not know how to paint!
This sentence refers about the lacking of knowledge of a person about a skill, which in this case is painting.
Here the subject that does not have the skill is mi hermano (my brother) or él (he), which is the 3rd person in singular, therefore the conjugation of saber in present with this subject is sabe.
Nosotros no conocemos al nuevo dependiente. ¿Es amable?
We do not know the new dependent. Is he friendly?
This sentence refers about not having a relationship with a person, in this case an employee or dependent. Therefore, the correct verb to use is conocer.
In addition, the subject nosotros (we) is the 1st person in plural and the correct conjugation is conocemos.
No recuerdo bien dónde está el centro comercial, pero sé que está cerca de aquí.
I do not remember where the shopping center is, but I know it's close to here.
This sentence refers about not having the knowledge of fact: the location of a shopping center. Therefore the correct verb to use is saber conjugated with the 1st person in singular yo (I) as sé.
Pablo, ¿conoces al joven de camisa roja que habla con tu novia?
Pablo, do you know the young man with red shirt talking to your girlfriend?
This sentence is about if Pablo has a relationship with a person: the young man with red shirt. Therefore the correct verb to use is conocer conjugated with the 2nd person in singular tú (you): conoces (because this is a direct question)
Mis tíos viven en el campo y no conocen la ciudad.
My uncles live in the country and do not know the city
This sentence refers about people that have not been or visited a place. Therefore the correct verb to use is conocer conjugated with the 3rd person plural they (mis tíos) as conocen.
¿Sabe usted cuánto cuestan las sandalias anaranjadas?
Do you know how much orange sandals cost?
This interrogative sentence refers about the knowledge of a fact: the cost of a pair of sandals. Therefore the correct verb to use is saber conjugated with the 2nd person singular (formal speech) Usted (you) as sabe.
