know

Use know in a sentence

verb

Know is defined as to have an understanding of, be aware of or be familiar with someone or something.

An example of know is a doctor having the information needed to treat their patients.
An example of know is a friend recognizing another friend at a concert.

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"Know." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Know.

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Know. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Know

know

transitive verb

knew, known, know′ing

to have a clear perception or understanding of; be sure of or well informed about: to know the facts
to be aware or cognizant of; have perceived or learned: to know that one is loved
to have a firm mental grasp of; have securely in the memory: to know the multiplication tables
1. to be acquainted or familiar with: I knew him well
2. to experience: she has known both pleasure and pain
to have understanding of or skill in as a result of study or experience: to know music
to recognize: I'd know that face anywhere
to recognize as distinct; distinguish: to know right from wrong
Archaic to have sexual intercourse with

Origin of know

Middle English knowen from Old English cnawan, akin to Old High German -cn?han from Indo-European base an unverified form ?en-, an unverified form ?n?-, to know, apprehend from source can, ken, Classical Latin gnoscere, to know, Classical Greek gign?skein

to have knowledge
to be sure, informed, or aware

know Idioms

in the know

Informal having confidential information

know better

to be aware that one could or should act better or think more correctly

know best

to be the best guide, authority, etc.

know from

see from (sense )

you know

Informal you understand: a phrase used in conversational pauses

what do you know!

Informal an exclamation of surprise

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Link to this page

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MLA Style

"Know." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Know.

APA Style

Know. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Know

know

verb

knew, known, know·ing, knows

verb

transitive

To perceive directly; grasp in the mind with clarity or certainty.
To regard as true beyond doubt: I know she won't fail.
To have a practical understanding of, as through experience; be skilled in: knows how to cook.
To have fixed in the mind: knows her Latin verbs.
To have experience of: “a black stubble that had known no razor” ( William Faulkner )
a. To perceive as familiar; recognize: I know that face.
b. To be acquainted with: He doesn't know his neighbors.
To be able to distinguish; recognize as distinct: knows right from wrong.
To discern the character or nature of: knew him for a liar.
Archaic To have sexual intercourse with.

verb

intransitive

To possess knowledge, understanding, or information.
To be cognizant or aware.

Origin of know

Middle English knouen from Old English cnāwan ; see gnō- in Indo-European roots.

Related Forms:

know′a·ble
adjective

know′er
noun

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Link/Cite

Link to this page

Cite this page

MLA Style

"Know." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Know.

APA Style

Know. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Know

Verb

(third-person singular simple present knows, present participle knowing, simple past knew or knowed (dialect), past participle known, knowen (archaic), or knowed (dialect))

To be certain or sure about.
I know that I’m right and you’re wrong. He knew something terrible was going to happen.
To be acquainted or familiar with; to have encountered.
I know your mother, but I’ve never met your father.
To recognize; to distinguish; to discern the character of.
to know a person's face or figure
(also intransitive followed by about or, dialectally, from) To have knowledge of; to have memorised information, data, or facts about.
He knows more about 19th century politics than one would expect. She knows where I live. Let me do it. I know how it works.
To understand (a subject).
She knows chemistry better than anybody else.
To be informed about.
Do you know that Michelle and Jack are getting divorced? ― Yes, I know.
To experience.
Their relationship knew ups and downs.
(archaic, biblical) To have sexual relations with.

Usage notes

The dialect verb form is inflected in a non-standard way. In addition the different simple past and past, the form knows is used for both the singular and plural of all persons of the present tense: "I knows", "you knows", "he knows", "we knows", "you knows", and "they knows".

Related terms

get to know

Noun

(plural knows)

Knowledge.

Origin

From Middle English knowen, from Old English cnāwan (“to know, perceive, recognise”), from Proto-Germanic *knēaną (“to know”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- (“to know”). Cognate with Scots knaw (“to know, recognise”), Icelandic kná (“to know, know how to, be able”).

from Proto-Germanic: Old High German knājan (“to know, recognise”), Old Norse knā (“to know how”), Dutch and German kennen, West Frisian kenne

from Indo-European: Latin cognoscō (Spanish conocer, French connaître, Italian conoscere, Portuguese conhecer), Ancient Greek γνωρίζω (gnōrizō, “I know”) and γνῶσις (gnōsis, “knowledge”), Albanian njoh (“I know, recognise”), and Persian (šenāxtæn, “to know”).

English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.