ken

C2+ Topic:Senses & Perception

US /kɛn/ UK /kɛn/ See IPA manual

Minimal pairs

Sounds like cane /ɛ/ vs /eɪ/

Meanings

1

noun
range of knowledge or sight; to know or perceive

The reasons lay beyond the ken of ordinary people.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · range of knowledge or... knowledge understanding grasp comprehension sight perception perceive discern

Opposites

ignorance

Word family

Related forms knowkenninguncanny canny

Simplified etymology

Ken, meaning “know” in Scots, comes from the same ancient root as Old English know and can. That root is also represented by Latin noscere and Greek gignōskein, both meaning “to know.”

Etymology

From Old English cennan ('to make known, declare'), causative of cunnan ('to know'), from Proto-Germanic *kannjaną, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *ǵneh₃- ('to know').

cennan Old English *kannjaną Proto-Germanic *ǵneh₃- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Senses & Perception

External links

# ken

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /kɛn/
**IPA (UK):** /kɛn/

## Meanings
1. range of knowledge or sight; to know or perceive

## Examples
- The reasons lay beyond the ken of ordinary people.

## Synonyms
- knowledge
- understanding
- grasp
- comprehension
- sight
- perception
- perceive
- discern

## Antonyms
- ignorance

## Related Forms
- know
- kenning
- uncanny
- canny

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: cennan
- Root: *kannjaną
- Root: *ǵneh₃-

## Etymology
From Old English cennan ('to make known, declare'), causative of cunnan ('to know'), from Proto-Germanic *kannjaną, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *ǵneh₃- ('to know').

## AI Etymology
Ken is from Old English cennan ('to make known, declare'), causative of cunnan ('to know'), from Proto-Germanic *kannjaną, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *ǵneh₃- ('to know'). In present-day use, it means range of knowledge or sight; to know or perceive. Related vocabulary includes know, kenning, uncanny, and canny.

## Topics
- Senses & Perception

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