Pero vs Sino: Two Ways to Say “But” in Spanish
English has one word for “but,” so Spanish learners default to pero for everything — and most of the time that’s fine. But there’s a specific situation where Spanish switches to sino instead, and once you see the pattern, it’s an easy rule to lock in for good.
The short version
- Pero adds a contrasting idea onto a statement, positive or negative.
- Sino replaces a negative statement with the correct alternative — it only appears after “no.”
If the first part of the sentence is negative and the second part directly contradicts and replaces it, you want sino. Everywhere else, it’s pero.
When to use pero
- After a positive statement: Quiero ir, pero no tengo tiempo. (I want to go, but I don’t have time.) Es caro, pero vale la pena. (It’s expensive, but it’s worth it.)
- After a negative statement that just adds more information, without replacing it: No tengo dinero, pero puedo pedir prestado. (I don’t have money, but I can borrow some.) Here the second half doesn’t contradict the first — it adds to it.
When to use sino
- After a negative statement, when the second half directly replaces the first: No es rojo, sino azul. (It’s not red, but blue.) You’re not adding information — you’re correcting it.
- When both halves can’t be true at once: No fue Juan sino Pedro quien llegó tarde. (It wasn’t Juan but Pedro who arrived late.)
- Before a conjugated verb, use sino que instead of plain sino: No lo compró, sino que lo robó. (He didn’t buy it, but rather stole it.)
Quick chart
| Pero | Sino |
|---|---|
| Adds a contrast — Es caro, pero bueno. | Replaces a negative — No es caro, sino barato. |
| Works after positive or negative | Only after a negative statement |
| Doesn’t contradict the first part | Directly contradicts and corrects the first part |
The test that always works
Try this: could you rephrase the sentence in English as “not X, but rather Y”? If yes, and the first part is negative, use sino. No quiero té, sino café becomes “I don’t want tea, but rather coffee” — that “rather” is the giveaway. Compare that to No quiero té, pero tomaré agua (I don’t want tea, but I’ll have water) — there’s no direct substitution happening, just an additional, separate idea, so it stays pero.
The “no solo… sino también” construction
Once sino clicks, you’ll start noticing it everywhere in a related fixed phrase: no solo… sino también, meaning “not only… but also.” No solo habla español, sino también francés. (He doesn’t only speak Spanish, but also French.) This follows exactly the same logic as plain sino — the first clause is negative (“no solo”), and the second clause adds the corrected, fuller picture rather than a genuinely separate idea. You’ll also sometimes see it shortened to just sino que también when a full verb follows: No solo llegó tarde, sino que también se olvidó los documentos. (He didn’t just arrive late, but he also forgot the documents.)
Pero as a conversational opener
Outside of joining two clauses, pero shows up constantly at the start of a sentence in spoken Spanish, purely for emphasis or reaction, much like English “but” can open a sentence informally. ¡Pero qué sorpresa! (But what a surprise!) Pero bueno, ¿qué querías que hiciera? (Well then, what did you want me to do?) In these cases pero isn’t technically contrasting two stated ideas — it’s a conversational tic that adds punch or mild exasperation to what follows, and native speakers use it this way constantly without a preceding clause to contrast against.
Sin embargo: the more formal cousin
When you need a stronger, more written-register way to express contrast, sin embargo (however, nevertheless) steps in above pero. It usually starts a new sentence or follows a comma, rather than joining two short clauses the way pero does: El plan era bueno. Sin embargo, no funcionó. (The plan was good. However, it didn’t work.) You’ll see sin embargo constantly in essays, news articles, and formal emails, while pero dominates casual speech — knowing when to reach for the heavier option is part of sounding appropriately formal in writing.
Mistakes learners make
- Using sino after a positive statement: Quiero ir, sino no puedo is wrong — sino never follows something affirmative. That should be pero.
- Forgetting que before a conjugated verb: No estudió, sino trabajó should be no estudió, sino que trabajó.
- Using sino when the second clause just adds information rather than replacing the first: that’s still pero, even after a negative.
- Dropping “también” from the no solo… sino también construction and leaving the sentence sounding incomplete: keep the pair together for the idiom to land naturally.
Frequently asked questions
What’s the difference between pero and sino?
Pero adds a contrast to any statement. Sino only follows a negative statement, and it replaces that statement with the correct alternative.
Do you always use sino after “no”?
No — only when the second part directly contradicts and replaces the first. If it just adds more information, pero is still correct.
What is “sino que” and when do you use it?
Sino que is used instead of plain sino when the second part of the sentence has its own conjugated verb: No cantó, sino que bailó.
Can you use sino after a positive sentence?
No. Sino only ever appears after a negative statement. Anything else takes pero.
What does “no solo… sino también” mean?
“Not only… but also.” It’s a fixed construction built on the same negative-plus-correction logic as plain sino, and it’s extremely common in both speech and writing.
Is “pero también” the same as “sino también”?
No. Pero también just adds an extra positive point (“but also”), while sino también specifically corrects or expands on a negative statement (“not only… but also”).
Check your Spanish before you send it
Pero and sino mix-ups slip through even careful writing. corrector.co’s free Spanish checker flags them automatically.
Next: Qué vs Cuál · Bueno vs Bien
