knee — English Dictionary

Noun

1. In humans, the joint or the region of the joint in the middle part of the leg between the thigh and the shank.

   Examples

   Penny was wearing a miniskirt, so she skinned her exposed knees when she fell.

   He made him ſtoup perforce vnto his knee, / And doe vnwilling worſhip to the Saint, / That on his ſhield depainted he did ſee[…]

   More examples (1)

   KORRIS: I have tasted your heart. You have been with them, but you are still "of" us. Do not deny the challenge of your destiny. Get off your knees and soar. Open your eyes and let the dream take flight.

2. In the horse and allied animals, the carpal joint, corresponding to the wrist in humans.

3. In birds: The tarsal joint, uniting the tarsometatarsus and the tibiotarsus (homologous to the human ankle).

4. In birds: The joint uniting the tibiotarsus and the femur, typically hidden beneath plumage.

5. The part of a garment that covers the knee.

6. A piece of timber or metal formed with an angle somewhat in the shape of the human knee when bent.

   Examples

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   Deck beams were supported by hanging knees, triangular pieces of wood typically found underneath the timbers they are designed to support, but in this case found above them.

7. An act of kneeling, especially to show respect or courtesy.

   Usage

   • Archaic

   Examples

   Give them title, knee, and approbation.

   […] and he made a knee to the Caesar of Patna, giving that man all honour due to him.

8. Any knee-shaped item or sharp angle in a line; an inflection point.

   Examples

   the knee of a graph

9. A blow made with the knee; a kneeing.

   Examples

   Tante was groggy but not quite out so Winnie gave him a knee to the jaw that Rose had shown her, and that was enough. He slumped like a rag-doll to the floor.

10. The presence of a parent etc., where a young child acquires early knowledge.

    Usage

    • Figurative

    Examples

    The duty is, or should be, a thing taught at one's father's knee, and the structure of the family gently enforces it.

    More examples (1)

    This has significant implications for sacramental theology which it seems Pusey even realised in the way he spoke of his early life and of learning all he knew about the Eucharist and the Catholic faith at his mother's knee, […]

Verb

1. To kneel to.

   Usage

   • Archaic
   • Transitive

   Examples

   I could as well be brought / To knee his throne and, squire-like, pension beg / To keep base life afoot

2. To poke or strike with the knee.

   Usage

   • Transitive

   Examples

   When I blocked her from leaving, she kneed me in the groin.

3. To move on the knees; to use the knees to move.

   Usage

   • Reflexive

   Examples

   Hassan kneed himself up, over, in, soundlessly, feet on floor, knife out, eyes like blunter knife trying to cut darkness.

Noun

1. hinge joint in the human leg connecting the tibia and fibula with the femur and protected in front by the patella

   Synonyms

   knee jointhuman kneearticulatio genusgenu

   Broader terms

   hinge jointginglymusginglymoid joint

2. joint between the femur and tibia in a quadruped; corresponds to the human knee

   Synonyms

   stifle

   Broader terms

   jointarticulationarticulatio

3. the part of a trouser leg that provides the cloth covering for the knee

   Broader terms

   cloth covering