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  #1  
Old September 08, 2011, 03:07 PM
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"How"

So I'm taking a Spanish course online, and one of the phrases was:

Yo sé hablar español . . . I know how to speak Spanish.

But I'm not sure I how I understand why "how" doesn't have to be translated.

Furthermore, if Yo sé hablar español is I know how to speak Spanish, then how would you say:

I know to speak Spanish, i.e. I know to speak Spanish when I'm around Spanish people (instead of speaking English).
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  #2  
Old September 08, 2011, 03:17 PM
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"I know to speak Spanish"? What does it mean?
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  #3  
Old September 08, 2011, 06:25 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SPX View Post
So I'm taking a Spanish course online, and one of the phrases was:

Yo sé hablar español . . . I know how to speak Spanish.

But I'm not sure I how I understand why "how" doesn't have to be translated.

Furthermore, if Yo sé hablar español is I know how to speak Spanish, then how would you say:

I know to speak Spanish, i.e. I know to speak Spanish when I'm around Spanish people (instead of speaking English).
To know to speak Spanish would translated something like : Deber de saber hablar español cuando estoy en la compañia de hispanohablantes.
Ayúdanos hispanos si las palabras que escogí no son los mejores

As for your other question: to know how to is translated saber + the infinitive. That's just the way it is. Things often do not translate
word for word, and that is the nature of language (not just Spanish and English). In the great majority of times, maybe even 99% plus, the exact meaning can be conveyed.
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  #4  
Old September 08, 2011, 07:46 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SPX View Post
Yo sé hablar español . . . I know how to speak Spanish.
It is actually something like "I can speak Spanish".


Quote:
Originally Posted by SPX View Post
But I'm not sure I how I understand why "how" doesn't have to be translated.
Listen to Poli. You can't translate word for word.


Quote:
Originally Posted by SPX View Post
Furthermore, if Yo sé hablar español is I know how to speak Spanish, then how would you say:

I know to speak Spanish, i.e. I know to speak Spanish when I'm around Spanish people (instead of speaking English).
·Sé cómo hablar español cuando estoy entre/con españoles*. -> I know the way to speak Spanish when I'm around Spanish people (maybe implying there is a different style than when you're with other Spanish speakers).
·Sé hablar español cuando estoy entre/con españoles*. -> I can speak Spanish and how to do it with Spaniards.
·Puedo hablar español cuando estoy entre/con españoles*. -> If I'm with Spaniards, I can choose to speak Spanish. "Puedo" underlines my capability to speak Spanish.
·Hablo español si/cuando estoy entre/con españoles*. -> If I'm with Spanish speaking people, I speak Spanish.

*Please note:
Spanish people / Spaniards = españoles
Spanish speaking people = hispanohablantes, hispanoparlantes, gente que habla español.


Quote:
Originally Posted by poli View Post
To know to speak Spanish would translated something like : Deber(de) saber hablar español cuando estoy se está (only because you chose the infinitive, so it must match with an impersonal, otherwise, you could say "debo" and "estoy") en la compañía de hispanohablantes.
Ayúdennos hispanos/ayúdanos hispano si las palabras que escogí no son las mejores
Your chosen words are fine, I think, but it depends on what the intention of the sentence is. This one may state that you obviously have a certain level of Spanish knowledge, since you're able to communicate with Spanish speaking people.
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Last edited by AngelicaDeAlquezar; September 08, 2011 at 08:12 PM. Reason: Changed statement for a nuance
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Old September 08, 2011, 07:57 PM
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The 'I know to speak Spanish' phrase means that, out of courtesy, we speak Spanish when we're around hispanohablantes. If we speak Spanish, but choose not to speak it when everyone else in the room speaks Spanish, it's considered a breech of etiquette (rude).

I know to speak Spanish (instead of speaking English, because it would be considered rude) when I'm around Spanish people.

Last edited by Rusty; September 08, 2011 at 08:05 PM.
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Old September 08, 2011, 08:11 PM
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I see... Would you agree that we'd say then something like:
-(Sé que) debo hablar español cuando estoy entre hispanohablantes.

Some impersonal ways to say it:
-Hay que hablar español cuando se está entre hispanohablantes.
-Se debe hablar español cuando se está entre hispanohablantes.
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Old September 08, 2011, 09:51 PM
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Yes , to all three choices. I actually thought about posting the personal way you suggested, without the parenthetical piece, knowing that it would get the meaning across, but wondered if there was any other way to say it.
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Old September 09, 2011, 05:22 AM
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But "I know how to speak Spanish" ("Sé cómo hablar castellano") and "I'm known to speak my mind" ("Todos saben que digo lo que pienso") are both self-contained sentences (they are their own context).

Does "I know to speak Spanish" speak as clearly and univocally as those or did you have to make a plausible context?
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Old September 09, 2011, 07:35 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by aleCcowaN View Post
But "I know how to speak Spanish" ("Sé cómo hablar castellano") and "I'm known to speak my mind" ("Todos saben que digo lo que pienso") are both self-contained sentences (they are their own context).

Does "I know to speak Spanish" speak as clearly and univocally as those or did you have to make a plausible context?
Yes: the pattern "to know to [verb]" is a standard way to express "to know that it is appropriate/required/correct to [verb]", at least here in the northeastern USA. Context does not determine the type of meaning, although it may affect the exact nuance. If that type of meaning does not make sense in the context, then this pattern sounds wrong.
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Old September 09, 2011, 07:48 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by aleCcowaN View Post
But "I know how to speak Spanish" ("Sé cómo hablar castellano") and "I'm known to speak my mind" ("Todos saben que digo lo que pienso") are both self-contained sentences (they are their own context).

Does "I know to speak Spanish" speak as clearly and univocally as those or did you have to make a plausible context?
No. It requires a little bit of context or explanation. It does not stand well
alone.
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