well-known
Americanadjective
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clearly or fully known.
The well-known reasons are obvious.
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generally or widely known.
a well-known painting.
- Synonyms:
- celebrated, noted, famous, prominent
adjective
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widely known; famous; celebrated
-
known fully or clearly
Etymology
Origin of well-known
late Middle English word dating back to 1425–75
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.
Your mom is a well-known scholar of Persian food.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 1, 2026
Notably, many of the earlier Neolithic Dutch samples from further north – such as the Swifterbant culture, well-known for maintaining a hunter-gatherer economy alongside some adoption of agriculture – carried close to 100% hunter-gatherer ancestry.
From Science Daily • May 30, 2026
The world's arguably most well-known everyday superhero is best recognised for his colourful blue and red suit.
From BBC • May 27, 2026
Around the same time, my wife and I were invited to dinner by another adviser from a different well-known firm, but I was more cautious this time.
From MarketWatch • May 27, 2026
The kouros, the records stated, had been in the private collection of a Swiss physician named Lauffenberger since the 1930s, and he in turn had acquired it from a well-known Greek art dealer named Roussos.
From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell
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.
