KNEW Synonyms: 68 Similar and Opposite Words

knew

verb

Definition of knew

past tense of know

as in understood

to have a practical understanding of a career diplomat who knows several languages a fan who really knows baseball

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in experienced

to come to a knowledge of (something) by living through it knows full well how nerve-racking it can be to speak in public

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in saw

to have a clear idea of I think I know what you're trying to say

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of knew Heo Kang Il, an elite defector who managed a North Korean restaurant in China and in 2016 brought 12 of his staff with him to South Korea, knew people subjected to revolutionization and was subjected to it once himself. — Jieun Baek, Foreign Affairs, 30 Oct. 2026 Everyone who knew and worked with him was familiar with his stories, often told in a regional Texas twang and often more than once – and occasionally with a remarkable addendum. — Keith McDermott, Vanity Fair, 30 Oct. 2026 Who knew that McKellen’s Hollywood worries would end up with him following the same path as his friend, leading to both actors starring in the first generation of Marvel movies. — Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2026 The judge wanted to release him, but knew that he would be quickly picked up by ICE, his sister-in-law said. — Claire Healy, Miami Herald, 30 Oct. 2026 The person who knew him best was not, by his own account, especially forthcoming. — Literary Hub, 30 Oct. 2026 The rookie defensive back knew where to be for the interception from studying tendencies of the opponent. — David Furones, Sun Sentinel, 29 Oct. 2026 Still, Chen knew this was nothing compared to what TSMC would bring. — Gaby Del Valle, The Verge, 29 Oct. 2026 Baimbridge knew right away that something was up; Ennesser usually texted or e-mailed. — Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for knew

Verb

Running has historically been understood as an affordable sport.

— Kamaron McNair, CNBC, 30 Oct. 2026
But the methodology Benson and her co-authors used to reach those conclusions 21 years ago has not been generally understood.

— Katie Worth, ProPublica, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of understood

Verb

Codex pushes Git to its limits OpenAI’s monorepo experienced a sharp increase in development activity over the past year.

— Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 3 Nov. 2026
For Sallam, the film grew out of a broader conviction that history is most powerful when experienced through individual lives.

— Essie Assibu, Variety, 2 Nov. 2026

Definition of experienced

Verb

This also had a boat trip included, a lovely way to cool off after a day walking Barcelona’s lanes.

— Jaymi McCann, TheWeek, 3 Nov. 2026
According to the company, about 65,000 California Community College student accounts were impacted by data changes, roughly 1,000 were accessed and 400 had financial aid refunds taken out.

— Tarini Mehta, Sacbee.com, 3 Nov. 2026

Definition of had

Verb

The Tentative List, as the name suggests, comprises natural and cultural properties that a country considers to have the potential to be recognized as World Heritage.

— Karina Acharya, Condé Nast Traveler, 4 Nov. 2026
Miami recognized its issues right away, and some of UM’s defenders wasted no time trying to correct them.

— Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 3 Nov. 2026

Definition of recognized

Verb

Democrats felt optimistic about taking the majority earlier in the night than some had expected after the shocking win in South Carolina.

— Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 4 Nov. 2026
Nobody felt that more deeply than the College Football Playoff selection committee, which raised eyebrows galore in its first attempt of the season to make sense of it all.

— Eddie Pells, Chicago Tribune, 4 Nov. 2026

Definition of felt

Verb

But a more apt comparison might be the Mirabilia Urbis Romae, in which Medieval scholars deciphered the staggering ruins of Classical Rome.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 29 Sep. 2026
Re-creating the Herculaneum scrolls To date, one entire scroll and passages from others have been deciphered, largely thanks to the Vesuvius Challenge, a project launched in 2023 that encourages researchers to decode scrolls for cash prizes.

— Taylor Nicioli, CNN Money, 22 Sep. 2026

Definition of deciphered

Verb

Gillan’s hospitalization came just weeks after former Deep Purple bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes underwent 10-hour open-heart surgery.

— Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 3 Nov. 2026
The 6-foot-9 sophomore forward underwent an appendectomy Saturday and is out indefinitely.

— Steve Stein, Chicago Tribune, 3 Nov. 2026