Mastering the Past Tense of “Know”: Forms, Usage, and Examples

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The verb “know” is one of the most essential words in English. It expresses awareness, familiarity, or understanding of facts, people, places, or skills. Because it appears so frequently in conversation, writing, and exams, mastering its correct past tense is crucial for expressing experiences or knowledge that happened in the past.

Using the past tense of “know” accurately allows you to narrate stories, describe earlier experiences, explain what you understood or didn’t understand before, and communicate smoothly in academic, professional, and everyday contexts. Whether you are an English learner, a teacher explaining verb tenses, a writer aiming for grammatical precision, or a student preparing for exams, this guide is designed for you.

In this complete article, you will explore the detailed definitions, forms, and functions of the past tense of “know.” You’ll see extensive examples, learn rules and common mistakes to avoid, understand advanced nuances, and practice with many exercises. By the end, you will confidently use “knew” and related forms in past tense scenarios.

Table of Contents

3. Definition Section

3.1. Understanding the Verb “Know”

“Know” is an irregular verb that means to have information about something, to be familiar with someone or something, or to understand a subject or situation.

It belongs to several categories:

  • Main verb: It stands alone to express meaning. Example: “I know the answer.”
  • Stative verb: It describes a state or condition (awareness or understanding) rather than an action you can see. So, it is rarely used in continuous tenses.
  • Irregular verb: It does not follow the regular “-ed” pattern when forming past tense or past participle.

3.2. What Is the Past Tense of “Know”?

The simple past form of “know” is “knew.”

The past participle form is “known,” which is used in perfect tenses and passive voice.

Base Form Past Simple Past Participle Present Participle
know knew known knowing

3.3. Function of the Past Tense “Knew”

“Knew” expresses knowledge, awareness, or familiarity that existed or occurred in the past. It is used to:

  • Describe knowledge at a specific past time: “I knew her in high school.”
  • Express knowledge that is no longer current: “Back then, I knew very little about economics.”
  • Often accompany time expressions like yesterday, last year, when I was young.

4. Structural Breakdown

4.1. Forming the Past Simple of “Know”

Since “know” is irregular, its past simple form is “knew,” not “knowed.” In affirmative sentences, we use “knew” directly without an auxiliary verb.

Sentence Type Structure Example
Affirmative Subject + knew I knew the answer.
Negative Subject + did not (didn’t) + know She didn’t know the password.
Question Did + subject + know Did they know the rules?

4.2. Negative Form

In negative sentences, we use “did not know” or “didn’t know.” We do not say “knewn’t” or “didn’t knew.”

This is because when using did/didn’t in the past simple, the base form of the verb (“know”) follows.

Examples:

  • “I didn’t know about the meeting.”
  • “They did not know she was coming.”

4.3. Interrogative Form

To form questions, we use Did + subject + know + (rest of sentence).

Examples:

  • “Did you know him in college?”
  • “Did she know the schedule?”

4.4. Past Continuous with “Know”

Because “know” is a stative verb, it rarely appears in continuous (progressive) forms. So, sentences like “I was knowing” are generally incorrect.

This is because stative verbs describe a state or condition rather than an ongoing action.

Contrast examples:

  • Correct: “I knew her when we were kids.”
  • Incorrect: “I was knowing her when we were kids.”

4.5. Past Perfect with “Know”

The past perfect tense uses “had known” and shows knowledge that existed before another event in the past.

Examples:

  • “I had known him before he became famous.”
  • “She had known about the surprise.”

5. Types or Categories

5.1. Simple Past (“knew”)

This is the main past tense form of “know,” expressing completed knowledge or awareness in the past.

Examples:

  • “He knew the answer.”
  • “They knew each other well.”

5.2. Past Perfect (“had known”)

This tense indicates knowledge that existed before another past event, emphasizing the sequence of events.

Examples:

  • “By the time he arrived, I had known the truth.”
  • “She had known him for years.”

5.3. Negative Forms

  • Simple past negative: “did not know”
  • Past perfect negative: “had not known”

Examples:

  • “I did not know she was here.”
  • “They had not known about the meeting.”

5.4. Passive Voice with Past Participles

While the past simple passive is rare with “know,” the past participle “known” is often used:

  • “He was known by everyone.”

This is different from the active past tense “knew” but important to understand for context.

6. Examples Section

6.1. Basic Affirmative Examples

  • “She knew the answer immediately.”
  • “We knew the way back home.”
  • “I knew that song from childhood.”
  • “He knew it was wrong.”
  • “They knew the city very well.”
  • “My parents knew all my friends.”
  • “Everyone knew the story.”
  • “The teacher knew my brother.”
  • “I knew it was a bad idea.”
  • “She knew how to fix the problem.”

6.2. Negative Examples

  • “He didn’t know what to say.”
  • “They did not know each other before.”
  • “I didn’t know it would rain.”
  • “She didn’t know the answer.”
  • “We didn’t know the way.”
  • “You did not know the password.”
  • “I didn’t know he was married.”
  • “They didn’t know about the changes.”
  • “He did not know the rules.”
  • “She didn’t know anyone at the party.”

6.3. Interrogative Examples

  • “Did you know him well?”
  • “Did she know about the plan?”
  • “Did they know the rules?”
  • “Did he know the answer?”
  • “Did we know that before?”
  • “Did your parents know the neighbors?”
  • “Did she know what was happening?”
  • “Did you know my sister?”
  • “Did he know the way home?”
  • “Did they know the truth then?”

6.4. Past Perfect Examples

  • “I had known her for years before she moved.”
  • “They had not known the truth until yesterday.”
  • “Had you known about this before?”
  • “She had known the risks involved.”
  • “We had known each other since childhood.”
  • “He had known the details all along.”
  • “They had known the company was in trouble.”
  • “I had not known he was coming.”
  • “Had she known about the problem sooner?”
  • “He had known the answer but forgot.”

6.5. Contrasting Past and Present Knowledge

  • “Back then, I knew very little about computers.”
  • “I know much more now.”
  • “When I was a child, I knew nothing about the world.”
  • “Now I know how complicated things can be.”
  • “Before college, she knew only basic math.”
  • “Today, she knows advanced calculus.”

6.6. Contextual and Narrative Examples

  • “When I was a child, I knew every corner of that neighborhood.”
  • “At the time, he knew nothing about politics.”
  • “They knew each other from summer camp.”
  • “She knew he was lying, but said nothing.”
  • “I knew he would be late, as usual.”
  • “We knew the movie would be good.”
  • “As soon as he saw her, he knew she was upset.”
  • “Back in high school, I knew all the teachers.”
  • “They knew it was the right decision.”
  • “Before the accident, nobody knew about the fault.”

6.7. Idiomatic and Fixed Expressions

  • “Little did I know that my life would change forever.”
  • “Who knew that would happen?”
  • “As far as I knew, everything was fine.”
  • “For all I knew, he was telling the truth.”
  • “Before yesterday, we knew nothing about the project.”
  • “Nobody knew what to expect.”
  • “She knew better than to argue.”
  • “I never knew it could be so easy.”
  • “Everyone knew it was a bad plan.”
  • “Who knew learning grammar could be so fun?”

6.8. Tables for Examples

Table 1: Affirmative, Negative, and Questions with “knew”
Sentence Type Example
Affirmative “I knew the answer.”
Negative “I didn’t know the answer.”
Question “Did you know the answer?”
Table 2: Past Simple vs. Past Perfect Usage
Usage Example
Simple past “I knew him in high school.”
Past perfect “I had known him before moving to the city.”
Table 3: Expressions and Idioms with “knew”
Expression Meaning Example
Little did I know I was unaware “Little did I know what awaited me.”
Who knew? Expression of surprise “Who knew it would snow today?”
As far as I knew Based on my knowledge at the time “As far as I knew, the store was open.”
Table 4: Examples with Time Markers
Time Marker Example
Yesterday “Yesterday, I knew nothing about it.”
Last year “Last year, they knew each other.”
Back then “Back then, she knew all the answers.”
In 1999 “In 1999, nobody knew about smartphones.”
Table 5: Common Collocations with “knew”
Collocation Example
Knew the answer “She knew the answer right away.”
Knew the way “Luckily, he knew the way.”
Knew better “She knew better than to interrupt.”
Knew each other “They knew each other for years.”
Knew about “I knew about the problem.”

7. Usage Rules

7.1. When to Use “Knew”

Use “knew” to indicate:

  • Knowledge or awareness in the past at a specific moment (“I knew her in college.”)
  • Completed knowledge that no longer applies (“Back then, I knew very little.”)
  • With or without time markers (“Last week, I knew nothing about this.”)
  • To contrast with current knowledge (“I knew nothing then, but I know now.”)

7.2. Using “Had Known” vs. “Knew”

Use “had known” when referring to knowledge that existed before another event in the past.

Examples:

  • “I knew him in school.” (simple past; no sequence implied)
  • “I had known him before he moved abroad.” (past perfect; earlier past action)

7.3. Negative and Question Formation Rules

  • In the simple past, negatives and questions require the base form “know” after “did/didn’t.”
  • Never say “didn’t knew” or “did knew.”

7.4. Stative Verb Restrictions

  • Because “know” is stative, avoid continuous forms like “was knowing.”
  • Use “knew” instead: “I knew the answer,” not “I was knowing the answer.”
  • Rare informal exceptions might occur in spoken language, but these are nonstandard.

7.5. Time Expressions with “Knew”

  • Common: “when I was young,” “back then,” “in 2010,” “last week,” “yesterday.”
  • These clarify that the knowledge belongs to the past.

7.6. Common Exceptions & Variations

  • Some dialects may use nonstandard forms like “knowed,” but these are incorrect in standard English.
  • In fast speech, “didn’t know” may sound like “dinno,” which is colloquial and informal.

8. Common Mistakes

8.1. Incorrect Past Forms

Incorrect: “I knowed the answer.”
Correct: “I knew the answer.”

8.2. Wrong Negative Constructions

Incorrect: “I didn’t knew.”
Correct: “I didn’t know.”

8.3. Incorrect Continuous Forms

Incorrect: “I was knowing her.”
Correct: “I knew her.”

8.4. Confusing Past Simple and Past Perfect

Incorrect: “I had known him yesterday.”
Correct: “I knew him yesterday.”

Past perfect is used for actions before another past event, not with specific past time markers like “yesterday.”

8.5. Misplacing “knew” in Passive Voice

Incorrect: “She was knew by everyone.”
Correct: “She was known by everyone.”

8.6. Table: Common Errors with Corrections

Error Explanation Correct Form
I knowed the answer. Irregular verb, not regular “-ed” I knew the answer.
She didn’t knew him. Use base form after “didn’t” She didn’t know him.
I was knowing the song. “Know” is stative, avoid continuous I knew the song.
Had knew Past participle required Had known
She was knew by many. Past participle needed in passive She was known by many.

9. Practice Exercises

9.1. Fill-in-the-Blank

  1. I _____ (know) her when we were kids.
  2. Did you _____ (know) about the event?
  3. They _____ (not/know) the answer.
  4. She _____ (know) how to fix it.
  5. We _____ (not/know) he was coming.
  6. _____ you _____ (know) my brother?
  7. I _____ (not/know) what to say.
  8. He _____ (know) the way back.
  9. They _____ (know) each other well.
  10. She _____ (not/know) about the problem.
  11. Before yesterday, I _____ (not/know) about it.
  12. He _____ (know) the answer immediately.
  13. We _____ (not/know) the rules.
  14. _____ she _____ (know) your parents?
  15. I _____ (know) the truth all along.

9.2. Correct the Mistake

  1. He didn’t knew the truth.
  2. I knowed her since college.
  3. She was knowing the answer.
  4. They had knew each other before.
  5. Did you knew about the meeting?
  6. I didn’t knew the password.
  7. She was knew by many people.
  8. We had knew the risks involved.
  9. I was knowing him in high school.
  10. She knowed the song.

9.3. Identify the Tense

  1. “They knew the answer.”
  2. “She had known him before.”
  3. “Did you know the rules?”
  4. “I didn’t know that.”
  5. “We had not known the truth.”
  6. “He knew her in college.”
  7. “She had known about the problem for years.”
  8. “I knew nothing then.”
  9. “Had you known about this?”
  10. “They didn’t know the way.”

9.4. Sentence Construction

Use the prompts to create sentences with “knew.”

  1. five years ago
  2. when I was a child
  3. before the meeting
  4. last week
  5. in high school
  6. back then
  7. yesterday
  8. before college
  9. during the trip
  10. as a teenager

9.5. Multiple Choice

  1. Yesterday, she ____ the password.
    • a) know
    • b) knew
    • c) known
  2. They ____ about the new rules last week.
    • a) knew
    • b) knowed
    • c) knowing
  3. I ____ what to do at that time.
    • a) know
    • b) knew
    • c) known
  4. She didn’t ____ the answer.
    • a) knew
    • b) know
    • c) known
  5. They ____ each other for years before they married.
    • a) knew
    • b) had known
    • c) knowed

9.6. Answer Key with Explanations

Fill-in-the-Blank Answers:

  1. knew
  2. know
  3. did not (didn’t) know
  4. knew
  5. did not (didn’t) know
  6. Did / know
  7. did not (didn’t) know
  8. knew
  9. knew
  10. did not (didn’t) know
  11. had not known
  12. knew
  13. did not (didn’t) know
  14. Did / know
  15. had known

Correct the Mistake Answers:

  1. He didn’t know the truth.
  2. I had known her since college. (or) I knew her in college.
  3. She knew the answer.
  4. They had known each other before.
  5. Did you know about the meeting?
  6. I didn’t know the password.
  7. She was known by many people.
  8. We had known the risks involved.
  9. I knew him in high school.
  10. She knew the song.

Identify the Tense Answers:

  1. Past simple
  2. Past perfect
  3. Past simple (question)
  4. Past simple (negative)
  5. Past perfect (negative)
  6. Past simple
  7. Past perfect
  8. Past simple
  9. Past perfect (question)
  10. Past simple (negative)

Sentence Construction Sample Answers:

  1. Five years ago, I knew nothing about programming.
  2. When I was a child, I knew every neighbor.
  3. Before the meeting, I knew the agenda.
  4. Last week, she knew about the changes.
  5. In high school, we knew each other well.
  6. Back then, he knew very little English.
  7. Yesterday, I knew the answer immediately.
  8. Before college, she knew only basic math.
  9. During the trip, they knew where to go.
  10. As a teenager, I knew a lot about music.

Multiple Choice Answers:

  1. b) knew
  2. a) knew
  3. b) knew
  4. b) know
  5. b) had known

10. Advanced Topics

10.1. Nuances in Using “Knew”

“Knew” often implies familiarity or awareness that may differ slightly from “was aware of.”

  • “I knew the risks.” (implies understanding and familiarity)
  • “I was aware of the risks.” (focuses more on conscious recognition)

Sometimes “knew” indicates deeper or personal familiarity.

10.2. Expressing Uncertainty or Surprise

  • “Little did I know…” means “I had no idea at that time.”
  • “Who knew?” expresses surprise.
  • These are common in narratives and storytelling.

10.3. Backshifting in Reported Speech

When reporting speech, present tense “know” often shifts to past tense “knew.”

  • Direct: She said, “I know the answer.”
  • Reported: She said she knew the answer.

10.4. Contrasting “Knew” with Other Verbs of Knowledge

Sometimes other verbs are more precise:

Comparison of Verbs of Knowledge
Verb Meaning Example
knew was familiar with; had information “I knew her in school.”
realized became aware suddenly “I realized I forgot my keys.”
found out discovered new information “I found out about the meeting yesterday.”
learned acquired knowledge through study or experience “I learned French in college.”
understood grasped meaning or concept “I understood the instructions.”

10.5. Register and Formality

“Knew” is neutral but can appear in both formal and informal contexts.

  • Formal: “The researcher knew the implications of the study.”
  • Informal: “I knew it!”

In some dialects or regional English, nonstandard forms like “knowed” appear but should be avoided in standard writing.

11. FAQ Section

  1. What is the past tense of “know”?
    The simple past tense is “knew.”
  2. Is “knowed” ever correct?
    No. “Know” is irregular; the correct past tense is “knew,” not “knowed.”
  3. What is the difference between “knew” and “known”?
    “Knew” is the simple past tense; “known” is the past participle used in perfect tenses and passive voice.
  4. When should I use “didn’t know” instead of “knew not”?
    “Didn’t know” is standard modern negative form. “Knew not” is archaic or poetic and rarely used today.
  5. Can I use “was knowing”?
    Generally no. “Know” is stative and not used in continuous forms. Use “knew” instead.
  6. How do I form questions with “knew”?
    Use “Did + subject + know…?” For example, “Did you know her?”
  7. What tense is “had known”? How is it different from “knew”?
    “Had known” is the past perfect, showing knowledge before another past event. “Knew” indicates knowledge at a specific time in the past.
  8. Why can’t I say “I didn’t knew”?
    Because after “didn’t,” use the base form “know.” So, “I didn’t know” is correct.
  9. Can “know” be used in continuous tense?
    Normally no, since it’s stative. Avoid “was knowing.”
  10. How do I use “knew” in reported speech?
    When backshifting, “know” in direct speech often changes to “knew.” For example, Direct: “I know her.” Reported: “He said he knew her.”
  11. Is “knew” a stative or dynamic verb?
    It is generally a stative verb, describing a state of knowledge.
  12. Are there idioms or fixed phrases with “knew”?
    Yes, such as “Little did I know,” “Who knew?,” “As far as I knew,” and “She knew better.”

12. Conclusion

The verb “know” is fundamental in English. Its past tense “knew” is irregular and essential for expressing past knowledge, experiences, and awareness.

Remember:

  • The past simple is “knew,” not “knowed.”
  • Use “didn’t know” and “Did … know?” for negatives and questions.
  • Use “had known” for earlier past knowledge before another event.
  • Since “know” is stative, avoid continuous forms like “was knowing.”

Practice with the many examples and exercises provided to internalize the correct forms. Mastering “knew” will help you narrate past experiences fluently and accurately, improving your overall English communication.

Revisit this guide regularly and keep practicing to make confident, mistake-free use of the past tense of “know” in all your English interactions.

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