well known

词义解析

well known 的核心含义是「被很多人知道或熟悉的」。它由两个义项构成：1）指人或事物因成就、特点而广为人知，带中性或褒义，如 a well-known scientist（著名科学家）；2）指某事实、情况为公众所知晓，常带中性或略显负面，如 It is well known that he resigned.（众所周知他辞职了。）这两个义项之间是引申关系：本义侧重「知名度高」，引申义侧重「信息公开、不是秘密」。前者强调声誉，后者强调公开性。理解这一区分有助于避免误用：说某人 well known 通常指有名，说某事 well known 则常指不是秘密。

词根溯源

well 源自古英语 wel，意为「好地、充分地」；known 是 know 的过去分词，源自古英语 cnāwan，意为「知道、认识」。两者组合为复合形容词，字面即「被很好地知道的」，由此引申为「广为人知的」。构词逻辑是副词 well 修饰分词 known，表示程度充分。记忆时可联想：well（充分地）+ known（被知道）= 被充分知道 = 众所周知的。这种「副词+过去分词」的复合形容词在英语中很常见，如 well done、well written，可一并记忆。

适用语境

well known 在多种场景中使用。学术写作中常用于引出公认事实，如 It is well known that...，语气客观。商务邮件中用于介绍人物或公司，如 a well-known brand，语气中性偏正式。日常口语中可指有名的人或公开的秘密，如 Everyone knows him; he's well known around here.，语气随意。新闻报道中常用于描述公众人物或事件，如 a well-known politician，语气中立。法律文本中较少使用，若出现多指「众所周知」的事实，语气正式。文学作品中可用于刻画人物名声，如 a well-known face in the neighborhood，语气描述性。总体而言，该短语语域较广，从口语到正式书面均可用。

语法说明

well known 是形容词短语，通常作定语或表语。作定语时，若位于名词前，常带连字符，写作 well-known，如 a well-known author；作表语时不带连字符，如 The author is well known.。常见句型：1）主语 + be + well known + for + 名词/动名词，表示因……而著名，如 She is well known for her novels.；2）主语 + be + well known + as + 名词，表示作为……而知名，如 He is well known as a critic.；3）It is well known that + 从句，表示众所周知。易错点：不要混淆 for 和 as；for 后接原因或特点，as 后接身份或角色。另外，well known 前可加 very、quite 等副词修饰，如 very well known。

相似词辨析

与 well known 意思相近的词有 famous、renowned、celebrated、notorious 等。famous 语气更强，指广为人知且常带褒义，如 a famous singer；well known 语气稍弱，仅指很多人知道，不一定著名。renowned 更正式，强调因优秀品质而闻名，如 a renowned expert。celebrated 强调因成就而受赞誉，如 a celebrated artist。notorious 则指因坏事而臭名昭著，带贬义，如 a notorious criminal。选择时需考虑语气和褒贬：一般知名度用 well known；强调著名用 famous；正式且褒义用 renowned；贬义用 notorious。

使用注意

well known 语域中性，可用于口语和书面语。褒贬色彩取决于语境：指人时通常中性或褒义，指事时可能中性或略带负面（如众所周知的问题）。常见误用包括：1）作定语时忘记连字符，如 a well known author 应写为 a well-known author；2）混淆 for 和 as，如 He is well known as his novels 错误，应为 for his novels；3）过度使用 It is well known that... 可能显得陈词滥调，学术写作中可换用 It is widely acknowledged that... 等。此外，well known 不用于比较级或最高级，如不能说 more well known，应说 better known。

高频搭配

• well-known fact
• well-known author
• well-known brand
• well known for
• well known as
• it is well known that
• become well known
• well known to

双语例句

1. She is a well-known scientist in the field of genetics.她是遗传学领域的著名科学家。
2. It is well known that exercise is good for health.众所周知，运动有益健康。
3. The restaurant is well known for its seafood.这家餐厅以海鲜闻名。
4. He is well known as a generous philanthropist.他作为慷慨的慈善家而广为人知。
5. The company is well known in the tech industry.这家公司在科技行业很有名。
6. It's well known around here that they are dating.在这附近，大家都知道他们在约会。