pero vs sino vs sino que

Question

when do you use them???

Answer 1

This site gives a concise contrast and also provides you with a quiz to test your understanding. Don't skip the beginning. It is not instructions on the quiz, but a grammar explanation of the differences.

pero, sino, sino que

Answer 2

Hello. I came across [an excellent article][1] on the difference between sino and si no (I believe Heidita recommended it) and it contained the following passage which explains when to use sino:

Sino (se pronuncia síno) es conjunción adversativa, que sirve para contraponer una afirmación a algo que se ha negado anteriormente: Ella no es fea, sino rara; Yo no tengo dinero, sino deudas; No es que él sea muy capaz, sino que tiene suerte. En el primer ejemplo se niega que ella sea fea, y a esa negación se opone la afirmación de que es rara; en el segundo, se niega que yo tenga dinero, y se afirma que lo que tengo es deudas; en el tercero, se niega que la persona de que se trata sea capaz, pero se afirma que, en cambio, tiene suerte.

I realize it's in Spanish, so, just in case you're not feeling up for it, I'll summarize in English. Pero means 'but'. As indysidnaray says, sino means 'but rather'. Sino is used when something is denied, and something else is affirmed. The passage from the article gives the following examples:

1. Ella no es fea, sino rara. (She's not ugly, just/but rather weird.) Sino is used because you are denying that she is ugly, and that is presented alongside the affirmation of her oddity.
2. Yo no tengo dinero, sino deudas. (I don't have money, just/but rather debts.) You negate your having money and affirm your having debts.
3. No es que él sea muy capaz, sino que tiene suerte. (It's not that he's very capable, but rather/just that he's lucky.) You deny that he is capable and affirm his luckiness.

Looking at my translations, I notice that you can often substitute 'just' for sino.

[1]: http://webarticulista.net.free.fr/s ino.html

Answer 3

Pero is used to mean "but" most often. You can think of "sino" more like "but rather" if that helps i.e.(the example from the spanisdict definition) No lo hizo él, sino ella. "He didn't do it, but rather she did." It indicates that something is contrary to what has been stated.