Meanings
- alsohuman sciencesBe aware of your own strengths and limitations.
1 more example
"Secondly, thou must keep in view what thou art, striving to know thyself, the most difficult thing to know that the mind can imagine. If thou knowest thyself, it will follow thou wilt not puff thyself up like the frog that strove to make himself as large as the ox; if thou dost, the recollection of having kept pigs in thine own country will serve as the ugly feet for the wheel of thy folly."
1885, Miguel de Cervantes, chapter XLII, in John Ormsby, transl., Don Quixote, volume 2
Origin
- Ancient Greekγνῶθι σεαυτόν
- Englishknow thyself
Calque of Ancient Greek γνῶθι σεαυτόν (gnôthi seautón), one of the Delphic maxims, popularly attributed to various Ancient Greek sages. The proverb in Latin is given as nōsce tē ipsum.
More words from Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek γνῶθι σεαυτόν, γνῶθι σαυτόν
- γνῶθι σεαυτόν (gnôthi seautón)be aware of both your strengths and limitations
- γνῶθι σαυτόν (gnôthi sautón)be aware of both your strengths and limitations
Arabic رحم الله امرَأً عرف قدر نفسه
- رحم الله امرَأً عرف قدر نفسهbe aware of both your strengths and limitations
Chinese Mandarin 自知
- 自知 (zìzhī)be aware of both your strengths and limitations
Dutch ken uzelf
- ken uzelfbe aware of both your strengths and limitations
Esperanto konu vin mem
- konu vin membe aware of both your strengths and limitations
Finnish tunne itsesi
- tunne itsesibe aware of both your strengths and limitations
French connais-toi toi-même
- connais-toi toi-mêmebe aware of both your strengths and limitations
German erkenne dich selbst
- erkenne dich selbstbe aware of both your strengths and limitations
Greek γνώθι σαυτόν
- γνώθι σαυτόν (gnóthi saftón)be aware of both your strengths and limitations
Italian conosci te stesso
- conosci te stessobe aware of both your strengths and limitations
Japanese 汝自身を知れ, 汝自らを知れ
- 汝自身を知れ (nanjijishin o shire)be aware of both your strengths and limitations
- 汝自らを知れ (nanjimizukara o shire)be aware of both your strengths and limitations
Korean 너 자신을 알라
- 너 자신을 알라 (neo jasineul alla)be aware of both your strengths and limitations
Latin nōsce tē
- nōsce tēbe aware of both your strengths and limitations
Norwegian Bokmål kjenn deg selv
- kjenn deg selvbe aware of both your strengths and limitations
Persian خودت رو بشناس
- خودت رو بشناس (xodat row bešenâs)be aware of both your strengths and limitations
Polish poznaj samego siebie
- poznaj samego siebiebe aware of both your strengths and limitations
Portuguese conhece-te a ti mesmo, conhece a ti mesmo
- conhece-te a ti mesmobe aware of both your strengths and limitations
- conhece a ti mesmobe aware of both your strengths and limitations
Punjabi ਆਪੇ ਨੂੰ ਪਛਾਣੋ
- ਆਪੇ ਨੂੰ ਪਛਾਣੋ (āpe nū̃ pachāṇo)be aware of both your strengths and limitations
Russian позна́й самого́ себя́
- позна́й самого́ себя́ (poznáj samovó sebjá)be aware of both your strengths and limitations
Slovak poznaj sám seba
- poznaj sám sebabe aware of both your strengths and limitations
Spanish conócete a ti mismo
- conócete a ti mismobe aware of both your strengths and limitations
Swedish känn dig själv
- känn dig självbe aware of both your strengths and limitations
Turkish kendini bil
- kendini bilbe aware of both your strengths and limitations
Ukrainian пізна́й само́го себе́
- пізна́й само́го себе́ (piznáj samóho sebé)be aware of both your strengths and limitations
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with know thyself
Cite this entry
know thyself. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/know%20thyself
“know thyself.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/know%20thyself. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “know thyself,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/know%20thyself.
Source: know thyself on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.