WordGarden.ioknee
A1Pronunciation
UK
- /nˈiː/
US
- /ˈni/
Meanings
Noun
the joint between the thigh and lower leg
Verb
to strike or push with the knee
Beyond the definition
The knee is the joint in the middle of your leg that lets you bend and straighten it. It connects the upper leg to the lower leg and helps you walk, run, jump, kneel, and sit. It is an important part of the body because it carries weight and helps you move with balance.
People also use the word in common expressions. If someone is "weak in the knees," they feel strong emotion, often love or nervousness. If a person "falls to their knees," they may be in pain, shock, prayer, or deep emotion. A bad knee can make simple things, like climbing stairs, much harder.
The knee is one of the largest and most important joints in the human body. It sits between the thigh and the lower leg, where the thighbone (femur) meets the shinbone (tibia). It helps the leg bend and straighten, supports the body's weight, and makes movement possible in daily life. Walking, running, jumping, kneeling, climbing, and many sports all depend on healthy knees.
This joint is not just bone. It also includes cartilage that cushions the bones, ligaments that hold the joint together, and muscles and tendons that help it move. Because it does so much work, it can be hurt easily. People often talk about knee pain, knee injuries, or problems such as swelling, tears, and arthritis.
The word is also common in everyday language and idioms. To "bend the knee" means to show respect or submit to someone. "Weak at the knees" means filled with strong feeling, often romantic feeling or nervousness. If someone is "down on their knees," they may be begging, praying, or in a very difficult state.
It can also appear in other figurative ways. If you are "up to your knees" in something, you have a lot of it around you or you are deeply involved in it. So the word can refer to a body part, to movement and health, and also to feelings, respect, struggle, and everyday experience.
Examples
- 1
Body part
She fell and scraped her knee on the sidewalk.
- 2
Pain
My knees hurt after the long hike.
- 3
Proposal
He got down on one knee and asked her to marry him.
- Phraseget down on one knee
kneel, often before proposing marriage
- 4
Injury
The doctor said the knee injury would need six weeks to heal.
More examplesFewer examples
- 5
Clothing
The child tore a hole in the knee of his jeans.
- 6
Depth
We walked through knee-deep snow to reach the cabin.
- Phraseknee-deep
deep enough to reach your knees
- 7
Business collapse
Years of debt brought the company to its knees.
- Phrasebring something to its knees
make it very weak or almost unable to continue
- 8
Quick reaction
Try not to make a knee-jerk decision; think about it first.
- Phraseknee-jerk
done too quickly, without enough thought
See also
Forms and spellings
4 forms open this card.
Main spelling
- kneenounverb
Forms
- kneespluralnounverb
- kneedpast tenseverbnoun
- kneeing-ing formverbnoun