"He knows how to be bad."

Translation: Il sait comment être mauvais.

[runciblehat]

"How to be bad" isn't an object, though. "Connaitre" is for acquaintance with a person, place, or thing. What he knows, in this case, is basically information: "In order to be bad, I must steal from babies, kick dogs, and grow a twirly moustache" (for example).

[ericdavis]

why the comment, and not just, il sait être mauvais. Savoir does not need comment when it means to know how

[ccjamp]

I thought sait was meant for facts, and connaît was for familiarization?

[SchWinDlaR]

Can we say "Il sait comme etre mauvais?"

[barundhati19]

"Comme" means "like". You can't use it here. However, "comment" means "how".

[Muzorewi1984]

I got the multiple choice thing wrong because I didn't tick "Il sait comment être mechant".

Is "mechant" really a direct synonym for "bad"? Sure it's a negative word, but I always thought it was translated slightly differently as "fierce" or "nasty" that sort of thing.

[Goldbluming]

Mechant does mean bad, but in the multiple choice it's "mechants" (plural) which is why it's the wrong answer.

[willijanb]

Does "comment" really belong in this sentence?

[Christine909735]

Can sait /or connait be interchangeable in this sentence. I like, someone else on this forum, thought sait refers to things and connait to people. ?? Thank you

[Muzorewi1984]

It has to be savoir here for the simple reason that connaître is only used with noun phrases. Je connais John, je connais ce librairie, je connais très bien New York, etc