Distinguish familiarity from information about a topic.

The idea

Know a person or place can mean being familiar with them. Know about a subject or event means having information about it.

Patterns to compare
ExpressionTypical meaning
know a personbe familiar with someone
know about a topichave information on a subject

Examples

  • I know the baker across the street.
  • We know this park very well.
  • Do you know my cousin?
  • I know about the festival from a poster.
  • She knows about local birds.
  • Do they know about the meeting?

Read-aloud uses a synthetic English voice on your device. Quality and availability vary; it does not assess pronunciation.

Watch out

Knowing about a person does not necessarily mean knowing them personally. Know can also introduce facts, such as I know the answer.

Try it yourself

  1. Choose the correct expression. I have met the artist. I ___ her personally. (know / know about)

    Show answer or example answer

    know

    know: The speaker has met the person.

  2. Choose the correct expression. I read a book on space; I ___ planets. (know / know about)

    Show answer or example answer

    know about

    know about: The speaker has information about the topic.

  3. Choose the correct expression. The message told us about the concert. Now we ___ it. (know / know about)

    Show answer or example answer

    know about

    know about: The message gives information about the event.

Use it today

Write about a person you know and a subject you know about.