So, you think Spanish is quite easy? Could be, because you’re progressing quite fast (I assume). But then you suddenly see this word; sino. You look it up in the dictionary see that it means ‘but’. Errr… WTF?!
Yes, Spanish has two ways to say ‘but’; pero and sino. And no, you can’t choose which one to use; there’s a rule dictating which one you *have to* use. Don’t worry though, it’s an easy rule which you don’t even have to memorize. I learned it by reading an explanation about it, and applying it when speaking (instead of working around it, which *is* possible).
This is the rule:
Sino is used when…
- …the first part of the sentence is stated in negative, or…
- …when the second part of the sentnece contradicts with the first part.
Still don’t know what I’m talking about? Look at these sentences (taken from spanish.about.com).
Pero in use:
- Me gustaría salir, pero no puedo. (I would like to leave, but I can’t.) The first part of the sentence isn’t stated in the negative, so pero is used.
- María es alta pero no es fuerte. (Mary is tall, but she isn’t strong.) The first part of the sentence isn’t stated in the negative, so pero is used.
- Los huevos son fritos pero no revueltos. (The eggs are fried but not scrambled.) Again, the first part of the sentence is stated in the affirmative.
- María no es alta pero es inteligente. (Mary isn’t tall, but she’s intelligent.) Although the first part of this sentence is in the negative, pero is used because there’s no direct contrast.
- No son muchos pero buenos. (There aren’t many, but they’re good.) Again, there’s no direct contrast, so pero is used.
- El virus Código Rojo no afecta usuarios, pero Sircam no remite. (The Code Red virus doesn’t affect users, but Sircam doesn’t let up.) The two parts of this sentence are used as a comparison rather than a contrast, so pero is used.
Sino in use:
- María no es alta sino baja. (Mary isn’t tall, but short, or Mary isn’t tall, rather she’s short.) There’s a direct contrast between alta (tall) and baja (short).
- No creemos lo que vemos, sino que vemos lo que creemos. (We don’t believe what we see, but we see what we believe, or we don’t believe what we see, rather we see what we believe.) There’s a clear and direct contrast between cause and effect used in this sentence.
- El protagonista no era conde sino señor. (The protagonist wasn’t a count but a lord, or the protagonist wasn’t a count, rather he was a lord.) Although conde and señor aren’t opposites, there are used in this sentence to contrast each other.
- No he venido a ser servido sino a servir. (I haven’t come to be served but to serve, or I haven’t come to be served; instead I have come to serve.) Again, there’s a direct contrast between the two purposes stated in the sentence.
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{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
So, as a thumb rule, ’sino’ should be used if we can stick a ‘rather’ between both parts of the sentence, right?
Hm, I’m not too sure about that ‘rather’-rule. Sounds logical, although in English it could sound a bit unnatural. Also, I never learned this rule by translating things in my head, I just notice that I said ‘no’ so I put ’sino’ in it. The rest goes automatically for me now.
What about mas? In starting to read Spanish books I have found mas (without an accent) is used as but, or so it appears.
So far I know ‘mas’ is used as ‘pero’.
Do you know why they might use one over the other?
“Mas” is used in a literary or a very formal context, while “pero” is the most common and usual word. Must not be confused with “más” (more).
Also I forgot to add one thing: “sino” also means fate or destiny, but again, in a literary text. Just to know. ;P
Thank you for the explanation, Oscar!