Known for
Today’s expression is an easy one. The main lesson was hard: there were a lot of new words and concepts in there, so I figured I’d give you an easy expression. “Known for.” Did you hear that before? Purrs, Belgium, is known for producing Duval beer. I’ve had Duval beer before; it’s Belgian-style. That’s appropriate, right, for a brewery in Belgium itself. Puurs is a town of 17,000 people. I’m sure it’s lovely, but there’s not a long list of reasons to know about Puurs. But here’s the thing that people will know about Puurs: it makes Duval beer. It’s known for producing Duval beer.
Kalamazoo, Michigan, is known for being the home of Gibson guitars. Baseball fans might also recognize Kalamazoo. It’s also known for being the home of Derek Jeter, a famous baseball player.
Now both Kalamazoo and Puurs are known for their Pfizer manufacturing plants. That’s the reason most people will know about these towns. So we say, they are now known for their Pfizer plants.
You might have noticed we can use “known for” with an -ing verb. Kalamazoo is known for being the home to Gibson guitars. Puurs is known for producing Duval beer. You can also use it with just a simple noun. K-zoo and Puurs are now known for their vaccine factories.
Let’s try a few more. See if you can tell if I’m using an -ing verb or just a noun. Napa Valley is known for its world-famous wine. Roland Garros is known for hosting the French Open.
Las Vegas is known for its casinos. Kentucky is known for producing bourbon. The Alps are known for their ski resorts. Florida is known for its beautiful beaches. South Beach is known for hosting crazy parties.
You can use “known for” with people as well as places.
Al Michaels is a sports broadcaster in the US. He hosts Sunday Night Football on NBC and I often watch that weekly game just for the broadcast—it’s that good. But Al Michaels is known for a famous call at the 1980 Winter Olympics when the American ice hockey team defeated the heavily-favored Soviet Union. “Do you believe in miracles?” Al Michaels asked, as the United States won that game in an upset. He’s best known for that famous line in that famous game.
If you use “known for,” you have a little bit of flexibility. You don’t have to say the most famous thing about a person or a place. You might have heard before that Al Michaels is best known for that famous call in 1980. But a lot of people don’t even know about that call. To them, Al Michaels is known for being a good football broadcaster. It depends on your audience; you can say he’s known for either. You can also qualify it and say he’s best-known for his call in 1980.
Arnold Schwarzenegger is a good example of a person known for multiple things. He was first known for being a bodybuilder. Then, he was known for his roles in movies like the Terminator movies. (I have never seen a Terminator movie from start to finish.) Most recently, Arnold is known for being the former governor of the State of California. There are three reasons to know about the Austrian-born celebrity.
Quote of the Week
Today’s quote of the week is more of a proverb, a common saying in English. “The darkest hour is just before the dawn.” The first person to express that thought was the English writer Thomas Fuller in the year 1650. The words he used were slightly different, given the evolution of language, but we’ll credit him with this quote.
“The darkest hour is just before the dawn.” Darkness, in this case, is a symbol of tragedy or difficult times, whereas “dawn” is a symbol of hope. Therefore, the quote means that in a long crisis, sometimes it can seem like it’s at its worst just before it starts to get better. Think about that as we all—hopefully—prepare to get vaccinated against this terrible coronavirus disease.
See you next time!
That’s it for today. Congratulations on reaching the end of another Plain English audio lesson. Remember the lesson continues online at PlainEnglish.com/322.
The video lesson today is the term “as long as.” I don’t know how we got through almost 150 video lessons without doing “as long as.” But that’s the topic of today’s video lesson. This, I’m just telling you, is an essential tool in your English toolbox. You have to know how to use “as long as.” So that’s today’s video lesson: I’m going to walk you through the steps, plenty of examples, and challenge you to start using “as long as.” That’s available at PlainEnglish.com/322 and it’s part of the Plus membership.
Next up: the monoliths. If you know what I mean, then get ready for Thursday’s lesson. If you don’t know what the monoliths are—well, you’re just going to have to wait because there’s no way for me to summarize it, it’s that weird. So join us on Thursday for a discussion of just the latest curveball that 2020 has thrown us. See you then!
Use realistic expressions like a native speaker
