knowing

American  

[noh-ing] / ˈnoʊ ɪŋ /

adjective

1. affecting, implying, or deliberately revealing shrewd knowledge of secret or private information.

   a knowing glance.

   Synonyms:

   perceptive, eloquent, significant, meaningful

2. that knows; having knowledge or information; intelligent.

3. shrewd, sharp, or astute.

4. conscious; intentional; deliberate.

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knowing British  

/ ˈnəʊɪŋ /

adjective

1. suggesting secret information or knowledge

2. wise, shrewd, or clever

3. deliberate; intentional

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noun

1. one cannot tell

Other Word Forms

• knowingly adverb
• knowingness noun

Etymology

Origin of knowing

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English knawynge (earlier knowende, knawande ); equivalent to know ¹ + -ing ²

Explanation

Something that's knowing is sneakily wise or perceptive. A knowing smile conveys a lot of information — it implies that you know a secret or are in on some background information. Picture Mona Lisa. A knowing glance tells its recipient that you've got them figured out or that you're aware of something they haven't shared with many people. You can use this adjective to simply mean "having knowledge" or "intentional" too, as when someone makes a knowing purchase of stolen goods. The noun version of knowing is also simple, meaning "the state of having knowledge or being aware."

Example Sentences

Every frequent flier recognizes the frustration of flights getting pushed back 15 minutes, then another 15 minutes, knowing it will take a full hour to find someone to repair that broken toilet.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 25, 2026

Knowing when to jump into the conversation at the right time, and knowing when to fall back.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 23, 2026

Kaiser Permanente and Stanford Medicine, among other providers, have said they would cease surgical interventions for minors but continue the other therapies, knowing that gender-affirming surgical operations on minors are almost never performed.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 23, 2026

“The plan is knowing what you have and what you need, and then figuring out how to bridge the gap between those two things,” she said.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 22, 2026

Boo smiled back, ever so briefly; she approved of her name, and the others were content in knowing their circle of friends had grown by one.

From "The Very, Very Far North" by Dan Bar-el

Related Words

• insightful
• intelligent
• perceptive
• sophisticated