weten

Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈʋeːtə(n)/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: we‧ten
• Rhymes: -eːtən

Etymology 1

From Middle Dutch wēten, from Old Dutch witan, from Proto-West Germanic *witan, from Proto-Germanic *witaną, from Proto-Indo-European *wóyde (“know”), a root perfect from the root *weyd-. The past tense forms is also composed of the regular past tense marker -te.

Verb

weten

1. (transitive) to know (knowledge), to be aware of something

   Ik weet hoe die planeet heet. ― I know what that planet is called.

   Ik ken Rusland niet, ik weet niets over dat land. ― I don't know Russia, I don't know anything about that country.

   Ik kan goed koken, maar de Indonesische keuken ken ik eigenlijk niet; ik weet niet eens hoe je nasi goreng klaarmaakt. ― I know how to cook well, but I don't really know Indonesian cuisine; I don't even know how to prepare fried rice.

2. (transitive) to remember

   Ik weet nog hoe koud het vorig jaar was. ― I still remember how cold it was last year.

3. (auxiliary, with te) to be able to, to manage to (literally, "to know how to/to know of a way to")

   De Batavieren wisten zich goed te verdedigen tegen de Romeinse aanval. ― The Batavians were able to defend themselves well against the Roman attack.

   Deze partij wist niet eerder de kiesdrempel te halen. ― This party was not able to reach the electoral threshold before.

   Weet jij een leuk cafeetje hier in de buurt? – Ik weet er een paar te zitten, maar ik ken er maar eentje echt goed. ― Do you know a nice pub around here? – I can locate a few, but I only know one of them really well.

   • 2003, Marylin Simons, Carrousel‎^[1], Paramaribo: Okopipi, →ISBN, page 53:

     Die overgrootmoeder van me, ze was eigenlijk niet van hier, als je goed berekent. Is van Bridgetown was ze. ‘Bados’ zeggen die mensen van daar want ze weten niet als wij te praten. Badyan... is Badyan praten ze daar, een soort van Negerengels ma' toch een beetje anders als van ons.

     My great-grandmother, she was actually not from here, strictly speaking. From Bridgetown, she was. 'Bados', the local people say, because they can't speak like us. Bajan... Bajan, they speak there, a kind of Creole, but still a bit different from ours.

Conjugation

Conjugation of weten (preterite-present)
infinitive	weten
past singular	wist
past participle	geweten
infinitive	weten
gerund	weten n
	present tense	past tense
1st person singular	weet	wist
2nd person sing. (jij)	weet	wist
2nd person sing. (u)	weet	wist
2nd person sing. (gij)	weet	wist
3rd person singular	weet	wist
plural	weten	wisten
subjunctive sing.1	wete	wiste
subjunctive plur.1	weten	wisten
imperative sing.	weet
imperative plur.1	weet
participles	wetend	geweten
1) Archaic.

Derived terms

• betweter
• jeweetwel
• onwetend
• te weten
• van de hoed en de rand weten
• van wanten weten
• weetbaar
• weten hoe laat het is
• weten waar Abraham de mosterd haalt
• wetenschap
• wetenswaardig
• willens en wetens

 

Descendants

• Afrikaans: weet
• Jersey Dutch: wête
• Negerhollands: weet
• Skepi Creole Dutch: guet

See also

• kennen

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

weten

1. inflection of wijten:
   1. plural past indicative
   2. (dated or formal) plural past subjunctive

Anagrams

• weent

Low German

Alternative forms

• witen

Etymology

From Middle Low German wēten, from Old Saxon witan, from Proto-West Germanic *witan, from Proto-Germanic *witaną.

Verb

weten (past singular wüss, past participle wüsst, auxiliary verb hebben)

1. (transitive or intransitive) to know; to be aware of (a fact)

   Ik weet, woneem du büst. — “I know where you are.”

   vun wat weten — “to know about something”

Conjugation

Conjugation of weten (preterite-present)

infinitive	weten
indicative	present	preterite
1st person singular	weet	wüss
2nd person singular	weetst/weeßt	wüsst
3rd person singular	weet	wüss
plural	weet	wüssen
imperative	present	—
singular	—
plural	—
participle	present	past
	weten	weten, wüsst
Note: This conjugation is one of many; neither its grammar nor spelling apply to all dialects.

Synonyms

• kennen

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch witan, from Proto-West Germanic *witan, from Proto-Germanic *witaną, from Proto-Indo-European *wóyde.

Verb

wēten

1. to know (knowledge)
2. to know (person)
3. to get to know, to learn of, to be made aware of (a fact)
4. (auxiliary, with te) to be able to

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Descendants

• Dutch: weten
  • Afrikaans: weet
• Limburgish: weite, wiete

Further reading

• “weten (II)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• Verwijs, E., Verdam, J. (1885–1929) “weten (I)”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN, page I

Middle Low German

Etymology

From Old Saxon witan, from Proto-West Germanic *witan, from Proto-Germanic *witaną, from Proto-Indo-European *weyd- (“see, know”).

Pronunciation

• Stem vowel: ē¹
  • (originally) IPA^(key): /wɪətən/

Verb

wēten

1. to know (knowledge)

Alternative forms

• wetten

Descendants

• German Low German: wetten, wieten

Zazaki

Etymology

From Arabic وَطَن (waṭan).

Noun

weten

1. homeland, home country
2. motherland, fatherland, mother country