I. ˈnäk verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English knoken, knokken, from Old English cnocian, cnucian; akin to Middle High German knochen to press, Old Norse knoka to hit, beat; all of imitative origin
intransitive verb
1. : to strike upon the surface of something (as a door) with a short sharp fairly heavy blow (as with the knuckles) especially so as to indicate one's desire to gain admittance (as into a room) or otherwise to attract attention : rap
knocked on the green painted door and it was opened almost at once — Louis Bromfield
stood there knocking on the gate
knocked on the table before beginning to speak
2. : to collide fairly heavily or jarringly with something : strike against or bump into something
knocked into one person after another in the crowd
his knocking knees belied the bluster of his talk — W.F.Hambly
3.
a. : to stir about or move along briskly, usually noisily, and often clumsily or haphazardly : bustle
heard him knocking round in the kitchen — Lucy M. Montgomery
went knocking rapidly down the road
knocking along at a reasonable rate — Dillon Anderson
b. : to go or move about in an irregular, haphazard, or aimless way : travel about in a careless or indifferent manner and often with no particular objective : wander , roam , rove — usually used with about, around
knocking idly up and down the country
decided to knock around the world awhile
knocked about the mountains for a couple of weeks
spent a couple of hours knocking around town
c.
(1) : to lead an irregular life often in straitened difficult circumstances : live like a vagrant — used with about, around
content to knock about the world in a more or less disreputable way — R.W.Southern
goes knocking about the roads day and night — W.B.Yeats
(2) : to exist in a condition of complete or nearly complete inaction, idleness, or neglect : pass the time inactively or idly : hang around : loiter , dawdle — used with about, around
used to knock around that neighborhood
would you have my pictures knocking about some art dealer's place — Louis Bromfield
4.
a. : to make a rattling, thumping, or pounding noise (as of loose connecting rods or loose bearings or other parts in a machine that strike against each other or another surface or as of improperly timed or uneven combustion in an internal-combustion engine)
heard the motor knocking
b. : to undergo detonation (sense 2)
an engine fuel that knocks
5. : to speak ill of something especially in a petty way : find fault with or criticize something adversely and often captiously
malcontents who were perpetually knocking
6. : to end the play in a card game (as gin rummy) and call for a comparison of hands
at this point the player may knock
transitive verb
1.
a.
(1) : to deal a short sharp fairly heavy blow to : strike sharply : deal a jarring blow to : hit , rap , buffet
knocked him on the chin
knocks it about more than any rough road will ever do — Hardiman Scott
(2) : to get rid of by or as if by dealing a stunning blow to : knock out : knock on the head
he can knock the worry if he takes a Scotch and soda — Ernest Hemingway
an effective remedy for knocking colds
(3) : to affect in an indicated way by or as if by striking sharply, beating, battering, hammering, or pounding
would knock any road to pieces — Tom Wintringham
knocked it apart
(4) : to produce or make by so striking or battering
knocked a hole in the wall
a workroom composed of two or three servants' bedrooms knocked into one — C.D.Lewis
b.
(1) : to set forcibly into sudden movement
kept knocking the croquet ball along with her mallet
or send flying
swung hard with his bat and knocked the baseball over the fence
or drive in an indicated direction
knocked the book away from his face
or to, into, or onto an indicated thing, place, or position by a short sharp blow, thrust, or stroke or a series of such blows or thrusts
knocked a nail up into the ceiling
: give a sudden impetus to by driving with a short sharp blow : impel or proplet suddenly and swiftly
(2) : to drive out by so striking : force out or expel by or as if by a blow
was knocking the dust out of his clothes — Henry Baerlein
threatened to knock his brains out
will knock such notions out of your head — T.B.Costain
can knock all the interest out of it — H.L.Davis
(3) : to drive forcibly off or down by or as if by so striking : cause to be so removed
knocked the head off the statue
knocked a considerable sum off the price
(4) of a dog : to drive (game birds) from cover : flush
moved in and knocked the birds — American Field
c. : shake , upset , bother , disturb
never gives up the idea that he can win, and nothing can knock him — D.W.Maurer
d. chiefly Britain
(1) : to knock out (sense 2a)
struck him under the right eye with her clenched fist and knocked him — Sigerson Clifford
(2) : to make a strong impression on : produce a strong effect in ; especially : to move to admiration or applause
nothing knocks a country audience like a hornpipe — J.K.Jerome
2. : to cause to collide fairly heavily or jarringly with something : cause to strike against, run into, or bump into something
knocked two oil drums against each other — Vicki Baum
didn't look where they were going and knocked their heads together
3. : to speak ill of especially in a petty way : find fault with or criticize adversely and often captiously
can satirize the manners and morals of our times and even knock the government — Lee Rogow
instructions were to keep smiling, knock nobody — S.H.Adams
4. : to obtain by or as if by striking or beating
a young man who can knock some fun out of life — A.J.Cronin
•
- knock cold
- knock dead
- knock for a goal
- knock for a loop
- knock into a cocked hat
- knock on the head
- knock out of the box
- knock spots off
- knock together
II. noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English knokke, knok, from knokken, knoken, v.
1.
a. : a short sharp fairly heavy blow : rap
a loud knock on the door
b.
(1) : a blow of misfortune or hard treatment
the school of hard knocks had given him a tenacious grasp on reality — Dixon Wecter
some of the disappointments and hard knocks life has dealt — A.B.Herr
takes the knocks of the world — M.N.Todd
(2) : something that checks, interrupts, or reverses good conditions or progress : setback , reversal , upset
appeared to receive a damaging knock from the events — Mollie Panter-Downes
2.
a. : a rattling, thumping, or pounding noise (as of loose connecting rods in a machine or as of uneven combustion in an internal-combustion engine)
was worried by the knock in his car
b. : detonation 2
a motor fuel that is not subject to knock
3. : a piece of often petty faultfinding or of adverse and often captious criticism
likes praise but can't stand the knocks
can take the knocks, not worrying what people say — Stella Molony
4. : an innings in cricket
won the toss and decided to take first knock
III. verb
•
- knock one's socks off