sabias

Sabias is a word in Spanish with two main, distinct uses depending on spelling and grammar. When written as sabías (with an accented i), it is the second-person singular imperfect indicative form of the verb saber. This form expresses past knowledge or awareness, as in tú sabías la respuesta or ¿Sabías que…?. The accent helps distinguish it from other words and marks the imperfect tense, which describes ongoing or habitual past states rather than a single moment of learning.

When written without an accent as sabias, the sequence operates as the feminine plural form of the adjective sabio, meaning wise. It is used with feminine plural nouns: las mujeres sabias, palabras sabias. In this sense, sabias functions as a standard descriptive modifier and does not involve any verb conjugation.

In practice, context determines which meaning is intended. If an accent is present, sabías clearly refers to the imperfect tense of saber; if not, sabias is typically the feminine plural adjective. However, some non-native writers or informal texts may omit diacritics, producing sabias where sabías is intended, which can lead to confusion.

See also: sabía, sabio, saber.