se, sabi pas se
Whether
Se means whether after verbs such as saber and demandar.
How It Works
| Verb | Example |
|---|---|
| saber | Sabi pas se ven. |
| demandar | Joan demanda se Maria es aicí. |
| me demandar | Me demandi se plòu a Carcassona. |
| saber (a question) | Sabes se Marta torna deman? |
A quick test: if you can say whether in English, it is this se. The se of a condition means if and begins the condition: Se plòu, demoram a l'ostal. The se of this entry means the speaker does not know the answer.
The verb after se is in its ordinary position: Sabi pas se Joan ven. Before a vowel, se elides: Sabi pas s'a manjat.
Me demandi means I wonder. It is the reflexive form of demandar.
Examples (5)
- Joan demanda se Maria es aicí.
Joan asks whether Maria is here.
Se introduces the question inside the sentence.
- Sabi pas s'a manjat.
I do not know whether he has eaten.
S'a is se plus a, with the elision.
- Me demandi se plòu a Carcassona.
I wonder if it is raining in Carcassonne.
Me demandi se means I wonder whether.
- Sabes se Marta torna deman?
Do you know whether Marta is coming back tomorrow?
Sabes se opens a question about an answer you do not know.
- Vos demandi se parlatz occitan.
I am asking whether you speak Occitan.
Se is followed by the vosautres form parlatz.
Common Mistakes
Leaving out the elision.
Sabi pas se a manjat.Sabi pas s'a manjat.Se drops its vowel before a word that starts with a vowel.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Se meaning whether is an indirect yes-or-no question, so yes-or-no questions and saber come first.
Related Patterns
Words in This Pattern
Practice se, sabi pas se in Bubblegum
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