Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “knowen” come from?

knowen (Middle English) comes from Old English cnāwan, from Proto-West Germanic knāan, from Proto-Germanic knēaną, from Proto-Indo-European ǵneh₃- — to know.

knowen (Middle English): to know

Definitions

  1. to know

Ancestry of “knowen”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishcnāwanto know, perceive, recognise; to know, recognise,...
2Proto-West Germanicknāanto recognise, to know
3Proto-Germanicknēanąto know, recognise, understand
4Proto-Indo-Europeanǵneh₃-to know

Words derived from “knowen”

  • known
  • knowledge
  • knowing
  • unknown
  • knowledgeable
  • knowingly
  • knowest
  • knoweth
  • unknowable
  • unknowingly
  • knowable
  • foreknowledge
  • knower
  • unknowing
  • unbeknownst
  • unbeknown
  • knowingness
  • knowledgeably
  • unknowability
  • knowability
  • unknowledgeable
  • unknowingness
  • unknow
  • unknowableness
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵneh₃- →