Related Searches

knuckle under

[nuhk-uhl]

knuck·le

[nuhk-uhl] noun, verb, knuck·led, knuck·ling.
noun
1.
a joint of a finger, especially one of the articulations of a metacarpal with a phalanx.
2.
the rounded prominence of such a joint when the finger is bent.
3.
a joint of meat, consisting of the parts about the carpal or tarsal joint of a quadruped.
4.
an angle or protrusion at the intersection of two members or surfaces, as in the timbers of a ship or in a roof.
EXPAND
6.
a cylindrical projecting part on a hinge, through which an axis or pin passes; the joint of a hinge.
7.
(in a wire mesh) a bend in a wire crossing another wire.
8.
(on a chair arm) one of the ridges left at the front end by longitudinal flutes carved to accommodate the fingers.
9.
Nautical. a pronounced edge formed by a change in the form of the shell of a hull.
COLLAPSE
verb (used with object)
10.
to rub or press with the knuckles.
11.
Marbles. to shoot (a marble) from the thumb and forefinger.

00:10

00:09

00:08

00:07

00:06

00:05

00:04

00:03

00:02

00:01

Knuckle under is always a great word to know.
So is interrobang. Does it mean:
a chattering or flighty, light-headed person.
a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.
12.
knuckle down,
a.
to apply oneself vigorously and earnestly; become serious: Just knuckle down for an hour or so and finish the work.
b.
Also, knuckle under. to submit; yield.

Origin:
1325–75; Middle English knokel (akin to Dutch kneukel, German Knöchel), diminutive of a word represented by Dutch knok, German Knochen bone; see -le

knuck·ly, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To knuckle under
Collins
World English Dictionary
knuckle under
 
vb
(intr, adverb) to give way under pressure or authority; yield

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Slang Dictionary

knuckle under (to (so/sth)) definition


  1. in.
    to give in to or accept someone or something. : She always refused to knuckle under to anyone.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases

knuckle under

Also, knuckle down. Give in, acknowledge defeat, as in The dean refused to knuckle under to the graduate students' demands, or He was forced to knuckle down before their threats of violence. Presumably this idiom alludes to a kneeling position with hands on the ground, knuckles down. [Mid-1700s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source
Dictionary.com, LLC. Copyright © 2012. All rights reserved.
  • Please Login or Sign Up to use the Recent Searches feature
FAVORITES
RECENT