Aware Of: Standard Pattern
Aware Of: Standard Pattern records the directly documented Cambridge construction and keeps the page scoped to that supported complement pattern.
Cambridge documents “aware of” when someone knows about or realizes a fact, situation, or person.
Key details
Choose the right form
| Context | Use | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| someone knows about a fact, situation, person, or thing | aware of + noun phrase | Use “of” before the thing known or recognized. |
| someone recognizes an issue or possibility | aware of + issue/possibility | The same construction introduces what the person realizes or knows about. |
| you are using another documented complement pattern | check that construction separately | This page is limited to the directly evidenced “aware of” pattern. |
Quick tests
Decision test
Are you introducing the person, fact, situation, issue, or other thing that someone knows about or realizes?
If yes: Use “aware of.”
If no: If your sentence uses a different complement structure, evaluate that structure separately instead of treating this page as a universal rule for every use of “aware.”
Caveat: The reviewed evidence directly supports “aware of something”; the guide therefore explains that construction without claiming that all other complement patterns are invalid.
Examples
She was aware of the change before the meeting began.
“Of” introduces the situation she knew about.
The team is aware of the risk of duplicate entries.
The complement names the issue the team recognizes.
He became aware of a second entrance at the back of the building.
“Of” introduces the thing he came to know about.
Further guidance
Construction
Cambridge documents aware of for knowing about or realizing a fact, situation, or person.
Style Boundary
This page records the supported aware-of construction without treating every use of aware as requiring an explicit complement.
Sources and evidence
Sources are shown with the role they play in this guide. Historical or style-sensitive claims are kept within the evidence boundary described above.
- aware — Cambridge Dictionary (opens in a new tab)Cambridge University Press · Cambridge dictionary evidence for the adjective construction aware of something.