Spanish grammar · interactive
Pero vs Sino Practice
Two words for “but” — one contrasts, one corrects. Drill the difference with instant feedback — no signup, no setup.
This pero vs sino practice covers a distinction English hides completely: both words translate as “but,” yet Spanish sentences accept only one of them at a time. Pick the right one in real sentences and get an explanation for every answer.
The short version: sino appears only after a negation, and it replaces what was negated with the correct alternative — “not A, but rather B” (no es rojo, sino azul). Pero simply adds a contrast without canceling anything — “A, but also / however B.” If you can say “but rather” in English, it’s sino; if you’d say “however,” it’s pero.
Try the pero vs sino exercise
Choose the word that fits the sentence. You’ll see why after each answer.
No quiero café, té.
I don’t want coffee, but (rather) tea.
How it works
- 1
Read the sentence
A real Spanish sentence appears with the connector blanked out.
- 2
Pick pero or sino
Choose the word you think fits. Instant right/wrong feedback.
- 3
Learn the why
Every answer comes with the rule behind it, so the pattern sticks.
What you’ll learn
- The two-question test: is there a negation, and does the second part replace the first?
- Why a negation alone isn’t enough — pero can follow ‘no’ too
- When sino becomes sino que: before a clause with a conjugated verb
- The fixed pattern no solo… sino también, plus sino as “except”
The rule that actually works
“Sino after negative sentences” is the half-rule that causes most of the errors, because pero also appears after negative sentences all the time. The full rule asks two questions: (1) Is the first part negated? (2) Does the second part replace or correct what was negated? Only when both answers are yes do you use sino. ‘No es caro, sino barato’ — cheap replaces expensive. ‘No es caro, pero no me gusta’ — the second part doesn’t correct ‘expensive’; it changes the subject to my taste. Same negation, different connector.
A translation shortcut that maps almost perfectly: sino = ‘but rather / but instead’, pero = ‘but / however’. If ‘but rather’ sounds natural in the English version, Spanish wants sino; if it sounds forced, you want pero. And one spelling note before it bites you: sino (one word) is the conjunction; si no (two words) means ‘if not’ — ‘si no estudias, suspenderás’ has nothing to do with this rule.
Traps: sino que, no solo… sino también, and sino as “except”
When the replacement after sino is a whole clause with its own conjugated verb, Spanish requires sino que: ‘no compré el libro, sino que lo saqué de la biblioteca’ (I didn’t buy the book; rather, I borrowed it from the library). Drop the que and the sentence breaks. With plain nouns, adjectives, or infinitives, sino stands alone: ‘no quiere descansar, sino trabajar’.
Two more patterns complete the picture. ‘No solo… sino también…’ (not only… but also…) is a fixed correlative that always takes sino — ‘no solo es barato, sino también bueno’ — and it’s everywhere in essays and news writing. Separately, sino can mean ‘except’ after words like nadie, nada, or quién: ‘nadie lo sabe sino ella’ — nobody knows except her. It’s a more literary use, but recognizing it stops you from misreading sentences that seem to violate the correction rule.
Quick reference
| Use PERO for | Use SINO for |
|---|---|
| Plain contrast (es caro, pero bueno) | Correction after a negation (no es rojo, sino azul) |
| After a negation that isn’t corrected (no habla, pero entiende) | Only ever after a negation |
| Adding a “however” idea | Replacing with “but rather / instead” |
| Never becomes ‘pero que’ | Sino que before a conjugated clause |
| Can start a sentence (Pero ¿por qué?) | No solo… sino también; ‘except’ (nadie sino ella) |
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between pero and sino?
Both mean ‘but’, but sino is used only after a negation to replace or correct it — ‘not A, but rather B’ (no es rojo, sino azul) — while pero adds a contrast without replacing anything (es caro, pero bueno).
Do you say ‘no quiero café, pero té’ or ‘no quiero café, sino té’?
‘No quiero café, sino té.’ The sentence negates coffee and replaces it with tea, and that correction after a negation always takes sino, never pero.
When do you use ‘sino que’ instead of ‘sino’?
Use sino que when what follows is a full clause with a conjugated verb: ‘no fuimos al cine, sino que nos quedamos en casa’. Before a noun, adjective, or infinitive, plain sino is enough: ‘no quiere té, sino café’.
Can pero come after a negative sentence?
Yes — that’s the classic trap. Pero follows a negation whenever the second part adds a contrast instead of correcting the negation: ‘no habla español, pero le encanta la música latina’. Sino requires an actual replacement of what was negated.
Make pero vs sino automatic
The two-question test works on paper — real sentences make it reflexive. HablaCore practices pero vs sino in real AI-generated sentences with instant feedback, and keeps serving the trap cases until you stop falling for them.
Practice pero vs sino in real sentences