connaître

• connaitre (post-1990 spelling)
• connoître (obsolete)

Inherited from Old French conoistre, from Late Latin conōscere, from Latin cognōscere.

• IPA^(key): /kɔ.nɛtʁ/

• Audio:

  (file)

connaître

1. (transitive) to know (of), to be familiar with (a person, place, fact, event)
2. (transitive) to know, to experience (glory, hunger, problems etc.)
3. (transitive, archaic, euphemistic) to know (sexually)
4. (pronominal) to be knowledgeable (en about)

   C’est toi qui t’y connais! ― You're the expert! (literally, “It is you who knows!”)

5. (law, somewhat archaic) to hear or examine judicially; to judge or decide judicially
   • 1849 August 9, “Loi du 9 août 1849 sur l'état de siège [Law of 9 August 1849 on State of Siege]”, in Légifrance‎, published 2004-12-21:

     Après la levée de l’état de siège, les tribunaux militaires continuent de connaître des crimes et délits dont la poursuite leur avait été déférée.

     After the lifting of the state of siege, the military tribunals continue to address crimes and offences whose prosecution has been submitted to them.

In the sense of "to know something to be true", the verb savoir is used.

This verb is one of a fairly small group of -re verbs that are all conjugated the same way. They are unlike other verb groups in that the 'i' is given a circumflex before a 't'.

This verb is one of a fairly small group of -re verbs that are all conjugated the same way. They are unlike other verb groups in that the 'i' is given a circumflex before a 't'.

• “connaître”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé , 2012.
• “connaître” in Dictionnaire français en ligne Larousse.
• “connaître” in Dico en ligne Le Robert.

• actionner, container, encornait, reconnait, reconnaît, renonçait

• counaîte (France, Guernsey)

From Old French conoistre, from Late Latin conōscere, from Latin cognōscere.

connaître

1. (Jersey) to know

• connaître de vue (“to know by sight”)