Spelling.School · How to spell

How to spell knew

What it means: To have understood or had information in the past.

In a sentence: She knew the answer to the math problem. ▶

The part people get wrong

Watch for a silent k. Often misspelled as new or kn ew.

Sounds like, but is not: new. Same sound, different spelling and meaning.

Same family: know, known, knowing, knowledge, knowledgeable. If you can spell one, the shared part carries to the others.

Where it comes from: “Knew” is the irregular past tense of “know,” from Old English “cnāwan,” which also had a silent-style initial /k/ sound that later disappeared in speech but stayed in the spelling. The silent “k” in words like know, knew, and knife is a fossil from that older pronunciation.

Patterns it uses: Silent letters

Try spelling it

You will hear the word and a sentence. Type it and press Enter. Then four more words from the same level, so you know where you stand.

Words like this

knowledge · known · whether · piece · interview · team · here · site

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