know the score
know the score verb: to be aware of a situation, especially of the consequences of misconduct.
Verb
know the score (third-person singular simple present knows the score, present participle knowing the score, simple past knew the score, past participle known the score)
- To be aware of a situation, especially of the consequences of misconduct.
- I've seen it before / I know the score / You're trying to be wild and carefree / You really can't take it no more1980, “Somehow”, in New Clear Days, performed by The Vapors
- Our love wasn't perfect I know, I think you know the score / When you say you love me, oh boy, I can't ask for more1990, Stock Aitken Waterman, “Better the Devil You Know”, in Rhythm of Love, performed by Kylie Minogue
Forms of know the score
| third-person singular present | knows the score |
|---|---|
| present participle | knowing the score |
| past | knew the score |
| past participle | known the score |
Questions about know the score
- What does know the score mean?
- Know the score means to be aware of a situation, especially of the consequences of misconduct.
- What part of speech is know the score?
- Know the score is a verb.
- What is the past tense of know the score?
- The past tense of know the score is knew the score.
Words near know the score in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: know the score (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-au-know the score.ogg.
Cite this entry: “know the score.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/know_the_score. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.