know · no · now

know and no are true homophones — /noʊ/. now shares the same start but glides through a different diphthong, /naʊ/.

know and no are exact homophones — /noʊ/, the silent K makes no difference at all. now shares the same starting /n/ but switches to a completely different diphthong, /naʊ/.

⠿ reorder

know

verb — to have information or understanding — 'I know the answer' · 'do you know her?'

mouth shape

diphthong /oʊ/ — lips round and glide from mid to high — the K is completely silent

know

/noʊ/

vowel length

diphthong /oʊ/

⠿ reorder

the opposite of yes — 'no thank you' · 'there's no time'

mouth shape

identical to 'know' — diphthong /oʊ/ — know and no are true homophones

no

/noʊ/

vowel length

diphthong /oʊ/

⠿ reorder

now

at this moment — 'do it now' · 'right now' · 'now or never'

mouth shape

a different diphthong from know/no — /aʊ/ — mouth opens wide first, then lips round and rise — like 'cow', 'how'

now

/naʊ/

vowel length

diphthong /aʊ/

Key difference

Say “go” then “cow” back to back — that vowel switch is the whole story. know and no glide gently from “oh” toward “oo”, lips rounding as they go. now opens the mouth wide first, like “ah”, then rounds up toward “oo” — a bigger, more dramatic glide in the opposite direction.

Example sentences

know:“I know the answer to that question.”

no:“There is no milk left in the fridge.”

now:“Please come here right now.”

now:“It’s now or never.”

Hear it in the wild

Real speech from native speakers — the most reliable way to check a pronunciation, since automated audio can vary by device and browser.

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know

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