Saber (to know) means to have information in your mind. Moreover, it means to know about a subject you are familiar with.
Conocer (to know) means<em> to recognize someone or something.</em>
Therefore:
1. I know how to read.
In this case, I would use saber.
In Spanish, this sentence means:
Yo sé como leer.
sé is the conjugation of the verb saber for the first-person singular in the simple present. In this case, I know how to do something, that is, I am familiar with a subject which is the reading.
2. She knows the answer
In this case, I would use saber.
In Spanish, this sentence means:
Ella sabe la respuesta
sabe is the conjugation of the verb saber for the third-person singular in the simple present. In this case, she has information of something.
3. They know María
In this case, I wouldn't use saber, but conocer.
In Spanish, this sentence means:
Ellos conocen a María
<em>conocen</em> is the conjugation of the verb conocer for the third-person plural in the simple present. So, <em>they may recognize María if they look at her.</em>
4. We know Johnny Depp!
In this case, I wouldn't use saber, but conocer.
In Spanish, this sentence means:
<em>¡Nosotros </em><em>conocemos </em><em>a Johnny Depp!</em>
<em>conocemos</em> is the conjugation of the verb conocer for the first-person plural in the simple present. So, <em>if</em> <em>we look at</em> <em>Johnny Depp we may recognize him</em>
5. Do you know San Francisco?
In this case, I wouldn't use <em>saber,</em> but conocer.
In Spanish, this sentence means:
¿Conoces San Francisco?
conoces is the conjugation of the verb conocer for the second-person singular in the simple present. So, <em>someone is asking me if I could recognize some place called San Francisco.</em>
6. I know all about birds
In this case, I would use saber
In Spanish, this sentence means:
<em>Yo </em><em>sé </em><em>todo sobre aves</em>
As in exercise 1, we use the conjugation <em>sé </em>here. So, <em>I have a lot of information about a subject, that is, birds</em>
