- Home
- Idioms
- you know
you know
you know
an expression placed on the end of a statement for pause or emphasis. (This expression is often overused, in which case it is totally meaningless and irritating.) Tom: Sure, I spent a fortune on this car. Can't take it with you, you know. Rachel: But there are better things to do with it here and now. Bill: Do you always lock your door? Tom: Usually. There's a lot of theft around here, you know.
you know
(spoken) you understand
She was cleaning, you know, when the police called to tell her about the accident. Usage notes: usually used to be sure someone is listening carefully and agrees with what you are saying: It didn't have to happen that way, you know?
you know
You are aware, you see, do you remember, as in She's very lonely, you know, so do go and visit, or You know, this exhibit ends tomorrow, or You know that black dog our neighbors had? She was run over a year ago. This phrase is also quite often a conversational filler, equivalent to "um" and occasionally repeated over and over (as in It's a fine day for, you know, the beach, and, you know, we could leave now); this usage is more oral than written, and many consider it deplorable. [Late 1500s]
you know
Informal Used parenthetically in conversation, as to fill pauses or educe the listener's agreement or sympathy: Please try to be, you know, a little quieter. How were we supposed to make camp in a storm like that, you know?