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Synonyms

knew

American  
[noo, nyoo] / nu, nyu /

verb

  1. simple past tense of know.

knew British  
/ njuː /

verb

  1. the past tense of know

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

For Geffen co-stars Beatty and Hatendi, it has been a privilege to work alongside two people who knew Fugard so intimately and understood apartheid South Africa so thoroughly.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026

I knew that if I didn’t start moving more right away and making time for fun activities, I might lose the chance to do so.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

Harrods told BBC London the independent external investigation it had established into whether any current employees knew about the alleged abuse was concluding.

From BBC • Apr. 14, 2026

Ibram Kendi: First, I knew that I was going to tell the U.S. story throughout.

From Slate • Apr. 13, 2026

The next thing I knew, Betsie was standing at the foot of the bed, a steaming cup of herb tea in her hand.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.