ESEN
Which one to use?Beginneradjectiveverb (past tense)
NewvsKnew
'New' means recently made or discovered; 'knew' is the past tense of 'to know'.
Side-by-side comparison
New
adjective"New" is the adjective for something recently created, bought, or discovered, different from what came before. "New shoes" = recently purchased shoes. "New year" = the year just beginning.
We just launched a new version of the app with improved performance.
She is the new director, she started just last Monday.
Is there anything new to report from the client meeting?
Knew
verb (past tense)"Knew" is the simple past tense of "know": you had knowledge of something at that time. "She knew the answer" = she had the answer in her mind. Pronounced the same as "new".
She knew the answer before anyone else had finished reading the question.
He knew the client would react badly to the price increase.
Nobody knew what caused the system failure at first.
Common mistake
- •"I new it all along" when meaning had knowledge is wrong (correct: knew).
- •And "She had a knew strategy" is wrong for recent: the adjective is "new strategy."
Trick to remember it
- •"Knew" belongs to the silent-K family: know, kneel, knife, knock.
- •If you know the verb "know," you already know its past "knew" shares the same KN.
- •"New" has no K, just the adjective for recently made.
Quick rule
- •Is it the adjective meaning recent or not used before? "New".
- •Is it the past of to know? "Knew".
Did you know?
The K of KNEW (and KNOW, KNIFE, KNIGHT, KNEEL) was actually pronounced in Old English, it was a real /kn-/ sound, normal and audible in Anglo-Saxon English. The K silenced gradually between the 16th and 17th centuries, but by then the printing press had standardized the spelling and fixed it permanently. In German, the same root preserves the pronunciation: "kennen" (to know people) and "wissen" (to know facts) still sound with initial consonants. "Knecht" (servant, squire in German) comes from the same Germanic root as "knight" (in English), both words are cousins that took very different semantic paths.
Practise what you learned
Exercise 1 · Pick the right one
I _____ the answer straight away. We had done this problem in class.
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
They moved into their _____ house last weekend. It's beautiful.
Exercise 3 · Form the word
Related word pairs
AcceptvsExcept
One means to receive or agree to something, the other means to exclude or not include.
AdvicevsAdvise
'Advice' is the guidance you receive (noun); 'advise' is the act of giving that guidance (verb).
AffectvsEffect
'Affect' is the verb meaning to influence something; 'effect' is the noun meaning result or consequence.
AislevsIsle
'Aisle' is the walkway between rows of seats or shelves; 'isle' is a small island.
Bryan López
Founder of SpeakUP Academy