/ nɒt; NAmE nɑːt/ noun , verb
■ noun
IN STRING / ROPE
1.
a join made by tying together two pieces or ends of string, rope, etc. :
to tie a knot
Tie the two ropes together with a knot.
( figurative )
hair full of knots and tangles (= twisted in a way that is difficult to comb )
OF HAIR
2.
a way of twisting hair into a small round shape at the back of the head :
She had her hair in a knot.
IN WOOD
3.
a hard round spot in a piece of wood where there was once a branch
GROUP OF PEOPLE
4.
a small group of people standing close together
OF MUSCLES
5.
a tight, hard feeling in the stomach, throat, etc. caused by nerves, anger, etc. :
My stomach was in knots.
I could feel a knot of fear in my throat.
SPEED OF BOAT / PLANE
6.
a unit for measuring the speed of boats and aircraft; one nautical mile per hour
•
IDIOMS
see rate noun , tie verb
■ verb
( -tt- )
TIE WITH KNOT
1.
[ vn ] to fasten sth with a knot or knots :
He carefully knotted his tie.
TWIST
2.
[ v ] to become twisted into a knot
SYN tangle
3.
[ vn ] to twist hair into a particular shape :
She wore her hair loosely knotted on top of her head.
MUSCLES
4.
if muscles, etc. knot or sth knots them, they become hard and painful because of fear, excitement, etc. :
[ v ]
She felt her stomach knot with fear.
[also vn ]
•
IDIOMS
- get knotted
••
WORD ORIGIN
Old English cnotta , of West Germanic origin; related to Dutch knot .