Breakdown of Ich habe keine Kenntnis vom Plan.
ich
I
haben
to have
der Plan
the plan
keine
no
die Kenntnis
the knowledge
vom
of the; (masculine, dative)
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Questions & Answers about Ich habe keine Kenntnis vom Plan.
What exactly does the word in the sentence, Kenntnis, mean compared with Wissen or Ahnung?
- Kenntnis (f.) = knowledge/awareness of a specific matter; sounds formal/official. Typical: Kenntnis von + Dativ.
- Wissen (n.) = knowledge in general; with the verb wissen you express facts: Ich weiß nichts von/über den Plan.
- Ahnung (f.) = idea/clue; very common in the fixed phrase keine Ahnung for “no idea,” more informal.
Why is it keine and not nicht?
- You negate a noun with kein-, not nicht. Here the noun is Kenntnis.
- Kenntnis is feminine; in the accusative singular the negative article is keine (same form as nominative).
- Compare:
- Ich habe keine Kenntnis. (no knowledge)
- Ich habe nicht die Kenntnis. (I don’t have the knowledge — specific/definite)
What does vom mean, and what case is Plan in?
- vom = contraction of von dem.
- von always takes the dative, so dem Plan (masc. dative).
- Expanded form: Ich habe keine Kenntnis von dem Plan.
Can I say Kenntnis über den Plan?
- The standard collocation is Kenntnis von + Dativ.
- With the plural, Kenntnisse über + Akkusativ is common for knowledge about a topic (e.g., Kenntnisse über die Firma).
- Singular Kenntnis über is rare; prefer Kenntnis von in this sentence.
How would a native say this more casually?
- Ich weiß nichts von dem Plan.
- Davon weiß ich nichts.
- Ich habe keine Ahnung von dem Plan.
- All are natural in everyday speech; your original sentence sounds more formal.
Why not Ich kenne den Plan nicht? What’s the difference between wissen, kennen, and Kenntnis haben?
- wissen: knowledge of facts/claims; takes clauses or prepositional phrases: Ich weiß nichts von/über den Plan.
- kennen: familiarity with a person/thing: Ich kenne den Plan nicht = I’m not familiar with the plan (you might still know that it exists).
- Kenntnis von etwas haben: formal way to say you have knowledge/awareness of something; common in official or legal contexts.
Is Kenntnis countable? When would I use Kenntnisse (plural)?
- Singular appears in set phrases: Kenntnis von etwas haben/erlangen/nehmen.
- Plural Kenntnisse = skills/competences: gute Deutschkenntnisse, Kenntnisse in Programmierung.
- eine Kenntnis is rare; learners usually need either the set phrases (singular) or the skills sense (plural).
Can I change the word order, e.g., Vom Plan habe ich keine Kenntnis or Ich habe vom Plan keine Kenntnis?
- All are correct.
- Ich habe keine Kenntnis vom Plan. neutral.
- Ich habe vom Plan keine Kenntnis. slight emphasis on the domain “the plan.”
- Vom Plan habe ich keine Kenntnis. strong emphasis on “the plan” (contrastive or topic-first).
Can I write von dem Plan instead of vom Plan?
- Yes. vom is just the normal contraction.
- von dem (uncontracted) can be used for emphasis or in very formal writing; both are correct.
Is Kenntnis des Plans also correct?
- Yes. That’s the genitive: Ich habe keine Kenntnis des Plans.
- It’s markedly formal/literary/legal. In everyday German, Kenntnis von (dem) Plan is preferred.
Does Ich habe keinen Plan mean the same thing?
- Literally: “I don’t have a plan.”
- Colloquially it can mean “I have no clue,” but that’s general and slangy, not specifically “no knowledge of the plan.”
- Use it with care; it can be misunderstood.
How formal is the original sentence?
- Quite formal/bureaucratic. Suitable for official statements, emails to authorities, or legal contexts.
- In normal conversation, prefer Ich weiß nichts davon or Ich habe keine Ahnung davon.
How do you pronounce Kenntnis and vom?
- Kenntnis: stress the first syllable (KENNT-nis); pronounce the t clearly.
- vom: starts with an f sound (like fom), with a short o.
Are there useful set phrases with Kenntnis?
- von etwas Kenntnis haben/erlangen: to have/obtain knowledge of something.
- zur Kenntnis nehmen: to take note of something (acknowledge).
- jemanden von etwas in Kenntnis setzen: to inform someone of something.
- Related noun: Kenntnisnahme (taking note), as in zur Kenntnisnahme (“for your information”).