What you don't know can't hurt you.

Question

There was a thread today entitled "Lo que no sabía yo.", which got me to thinking which is dangerous and led to this question.

How would you say "What you don't know can't hurt you."?

Lo que no sabes, no puede lastímarte.

Or is the subjunctive needed in the second part, because in reality what you don't know can hurt you.

Lo que no sabes, no pueda lastímarte.

So thanks to Julian, it seems the subjunctive should go in the first part. I still don't get it. But that's life,

Lo que no sepas, no puede lastímarte.

C'est la vi. Such is life. - HackerKing, Dec 14, 2013

Good one! - NikkiLR, Dec 14, 2013

Answer 1

I would use subjunctive, but in the first clause: Lo que no sepas, no te puede lastimar.

I will never get this subjunctive. Once you showed me yours it makes sense thet the knowing is what is more in doubt and so that is where the subjunctive goes. - gringojrf, Dec 14, 2013

Good discussion. - katydew, Dec 14, 2013

Answer 2

Gringo, there is a saying "Ojos que no ven, corazón que no siente". I think it is a good fit for your sentence. Saludos!

Hola, Sylyon; el dicho que usa Gringo no se trata especificamente de asuntos del corazón sino se trata de todo y más de información que te podría causar daño si la contaras a la gente ajena - 005faa61, Dec 14, 2013

Julian is right, but your dicho is excellent for a lot of things. - gringojrf, Dec 14, 2013

Answer 3

Both the subjunctive and the indicative are correct, just a little nuance between them.

Thanks. Its the nuances that make the difference in life. - gringojrf, Dec 14, 2013

You bet. :) - chileno, Dec 14, 2013