sacar vs tomar

what is the difference between "sacar" and "tomar" and when would I use one over the other? or are they interchangeable?

Think of "sacar" as "to take out", and "tomar" as "to take or to eat/drink". They are interchangeable in many respects. Tomar is used as in "tomar el sol - to take the sun (sunbathe), tomar asiento - to take a seat". sacar is more like "to take out", or "to take for ones use" (saco mi billetera - I take out my wallet).

Hola Kevin, JC está correcto como siempre. Sacar is to take out,remove and also get, as in Ella sacó su permiso de conducicr. She got her drivers license. Saludos, Rich

I have a little fun with "tomar el sol". The fact that tomar also means, "to drink", doesn't bother me in this usage since I think of it as, "to drink in the sun". That sounds like sunbathing to me. You don't hear it much anymore but "Drink it in" is a phrase sometimes used in English. It's kind of like "Fill yourself up with those feelings. Bask in that success, drink it in."

I wouldn't be surprised to find that there are probably numerous instances where Spanish has influenced English. I found it interesting seeing that "pesado" (heavy) has the same connotation in Spanish and English slang: "That's really heavy, man" - though like "Drink it in", you don't hear this too much any more.

I would assume that any time two or more languages intersect that they influence one another. One of the most interesting words to me is tocar, in the sense of touching a musical instrument rather than playing it, as we say in English. Often when I pick up my guitar to play, I think about touching the strings to make the music. Tomar suggests to me that the instrument has a more active role in the music-making than playing does.

Me gustaria algo para tomar and Puedo sacar su foto?. I would like something to drink and Can I take your picture? Diana said that instead of sacar su foto, it should be tomar su photo. This lesson was very early on. So its possible to say Me gustaria algo para beber and Puedo tomar su photo?

Yes - until someone smarter than me weighs in on this ;-). The preference to use tomar rather than sacar for taking a photo is probably a regional difference. When I hear "para tomar" with respect to drinking, it connotes to me an alcoholic beverage as opposed to "para beber", which is ambiguous. That said, "para tomar" is probably the form most frequently used.