cunnan

Etymology
From, from.

Verb

 * 1) to know, to be familiar with
 * 2)  can, to be able to

Etymology
From, from.

Verb

 * 1) to know, to be familiar with
 * 2) * Ælfric's Coloquy
 * "ang"
 * 1) * Ælfric's Coloquy
 * "ang"
 * 1) * Ælfric's Coloquy
 * "ang"

- Hwylcne cræft canst þū?


 * 1) * c. 1005, Ælfric's Letter to Sigeweard
 * "ang"

- Hū mæġ sē mann wel faran þe his mōd āwent fram eallum þissum bōcum, and biþ him swā ānwille þæt him lēofre biþ þæt hē libbe ǣfre be his āgnum dihte āsċīred fram þissum, swelċe hē ne cunne Cristes ġesetnessa?


 * 1) * late 10th century, Ælfric, "Saint Basilius, Bishop"
 * "ang"

- Bide nu æt gode þæt ic grecisc cunne.


 * 1)  can, to know how
 * 2) * c. 897,, translation of Pope Gregory's 
 * "ang"
 * 1) * c. 897,, translation of Pope Gregory's 
 * "ang"

- Hēr man mæġ ġīet ġesēon heora swaðu, ac wē him ne cunnon æfter spyrian.


 * 1) to be able
 * 2) * late 10th century, Ælfric, "Chair of Saint Peter"
 * "ang"

- ...and hē lēop sona cunniġende his fēðes hwæðer hē cūðe gān.

Usage notes
Old English used several different words to mean "to know":


 * Witan meant "to be aware of," and was used with facts and pieces of information: Iċ wāt þæt iċ nāt nāwiht ("I know that I know nothing"), Hwā wāt hū fela ōðerra manna sind mē ġelīċe? ("Who knows how many other people are like me?"), Hwanon wāst þū mīnne naman? ("How do you know my name?"), Þū wāst hwæt tō dōnne is ("You know what to do").
 * Cunnan meant "to be familiar with," and was used with people, places, concepts, and skills: Mæġ iċ hine lufian swīðor þonne iċ hine cann ? ("Can I love him more than I know him?"), Ne sorge ġē, iċ cann þis sċræf swā æftewearde mīne hand ("Don't worry, I know this cave like the back of my hand"), Ealdenglisċ cunnan þyncþ mē unnytt (" Knowing Old English seems useless to me"). With verbs, it means "to know how": Þū āna cūðest mē hreddan ("You're the only person who knew how to save me"), Wisson ġit þæt hē singan cann ? ("Did you know he can sing?")
 * Ġecnāwan and oncnāwan meant to recognize or identify, and could be used almost interchangeably: Þā stefne iċ wolde āhwǣr ġecnāwan  ("I'd know that voice anywhere"),  Ġecnǣwst þū þisne wer? ("Do you know this man?"), Iċ oncnāwe gōd handweorc þonne iċ hit ġesēo ("I know good craftsmanship when I see it"), Be þon oncnāwaþ ealle menn þæt ġē sind mīne frīend ("That's how everyone will know you're my friends"). Though is the ancestor of modern know and was probably a synonym, it was many times less common than these two prefixed forms in the Old English period, being attested only a few times in the surviving corpus.
 * Tōcnāwan meant "to distinguish" or "discern": riht and wōh tōcnāwan  ("to know right from wrong").

In the sense of "can", cunnan often specifically had the meaning of "to know how". was generally used for "can" in the sense of "to be allowed to", while was used with the sense of "to be able to, to be capable of" (indicating that a particular thing was possible). However, this is only a generalisation; more generic, Modern English-style uses of cunnan, where it appears to be used synonymously with, are attested.