"know someone when" meaning in All languages combined

See know someone when on Wiktionary

Verb [English]

Forms: knows someone when [present, singular, third-person], knowing someone when [participle, present], knew someone when [past], known someone when [participle, past]
Etymology: From the formulaic phrase by which speakers begin reminiscence of now-famous persons. Head templates: {{en-verb|know<,,knew,known> someone when}} know someone when (third-person singular simple present knows someone when, present participle knowing someone when, simple past knew someone when, past participle known someone when)
  1. (usually in the past tense) To have known a famous person before he or she was famous. Tags: past, usually
    Sense id: en-know_someone_when-en-verb-11wryCk0 Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries

Inflected forms

{
  "etymology_text": "From the formulaic phrase by which speakers begin reminiscence of now-famous persons.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "knows someone when",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "knowing someone when",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "knew someone when",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "known someone when",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "know<,,knew,known> someone when"
      },
      "expansion": "know someone when (third-person singular simple present knows someone when, present participle knowing someone when, simple past knew someone when, past participle known someone when)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "1915, \"Interesting People: Charles Bullard: A Famous Photographer of Cats\", in \"The American Magazine\"\nHis friends thought him crazy, as friends always think when a man has an original idea and acts on it. Now, when his friends speak of him they invariably add, \"I knew him when—\""
        },
        {
          "ref": "1918, Western Electric News:",
          "text": "Of course when your school chum comes in from the old home town you want to send him back a life-long member of the \"I-knew-him-when Club.\" You picture him back home, just a wee bit superior, as befits a friend of the great, holding forth to the boy's at the Sunshine Athletic Club.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1920, George Ade, I Knew Him When--: A Hoosier Fable Dealing with the Happy Days of Away Back Yonder:",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1971, W. A. Mambert, The Elements of Effective Communication: Idea, Power, Tactics, page 146:",
          "text": "The classical example of this is the \"I knew him when\" syndrome. Consider your immediate family. They know you as you really are, if anyone does.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2008, Lisa Tucker, The Cure for Modern Life, page 89:",
          "text": "\"Well, congratulations. On the speech, everything.\" She stood up straighter and forced a smile. \"I can always say I knew him when.\"",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To have known a famous person before he or she was famous."
      ],
      "id": "en-know_someone_when-en-verb-11wryCk0",
      "links": [
        [
          "famous",
          "famous"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(usually in the past tense) To have known a famous person before he or she was famous."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "past",
        "usually"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "know someone when"
}
{
  "etymology_text": "From the formulaic phrase by which speakers begin reminiscence of now-famous persons.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "knows someone when",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "knowing someone when",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "knew someone when",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "known someone when",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "know<,,knew,known> someone when"
      },
      "expansion": "know someone when (third-person singular simple present knows someone when, present participle knowing someone when, simple past knew someone when, past participle known someone when)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English lemmas",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English verbs",
        "Pages with 1 entry",
        "Pages with entries",
        "Quotation templates to be cleaned"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "1915, \"Interesting People: Charles Bullard: A Famous Photographer of Cats\", in \"The American Magazine\"\nHis friends thought him crazy, as friends always think when a man has an original idea and acts on it. Now, when his friends speak of him they invariably add, \"I knew him when—\""
        },
        {
          "ref": "1918, Western Electric News:",
          "text": "Of course when your school chum comes in from the old home town you want to send him back a life-long member of the \"I-knew-him-when Club.\" You picture him back home, just a wee bit superior, as befits a friend of the great, holding forth to the boy's at the Sunshine Athletic Club.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1920, George Ade, I Knew Him When--: A Hoosier Fable Dealing with the Happy Days of Away Back Yonder:",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1971, W. A. Mambert, The Elements of Effective Communication: Idea, Power, Tactics, page 146:",
          "text": "The classical example of this is the \"I knew him when\" syndrome. Consider your immediate family. They know you as you really are, if anyone does.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2008, Lisa Tucker, The Cure for Modern Life, page 89:",
          "text": "\"Well, congratulations. On the speech, everything.\" She stood up straighter and forced a smile. \"I can always say I knew him when.\"",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To have known a famous person before he or she was famous."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "famous",
          "famous"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(usually in the past tense) To have known a famous person before he or she was famous."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "past",
        "usually"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "know someone when"
}

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This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable All languages combined dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-12-15 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-12-04 using wiktextract (8a39820 and 4401a4c). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

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