Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web

on its knees

 - 4 dictionary results

knee

[nee] noun, verb, kneed, knee⋅ing.
–noun
1. Anatomy. the joint of the leg that allows for movement between the femur and tibia and is protected by the patella; the central area of the leg between the thigh and the lower leg.
2. Zoology. the corresponding joint or region in the hind leg of a quadruped; stifle.
3. a joint or region likened to this but not anatomically homologous with it, as the tarsal joint of a bird, the carpal joint in the forelimb of the horse or cow, etc.
4. the part of a garment covering the knee.
5. something resembling a bent knee, esp. a rigid or braced angle between two framing members.
6. Also called hip, shoulder. Furniture. the inward curve toward the top of a cabriole leg.
7. Building Trades.
a. the junction of the top and either of the uprights of a bent.
b. a curved member for reinforcing the junction of two pieces meeting at an angle.
8. Also called kneeler. a stone cut to follow a sharp return angle.
–verb (used with object)
9. to strike or touch with the knee.
10. to secure (a structure, as a bent) with a knee.
–verb (used without object)
11. Obsolete. to go down on the knees; kneel.
12. bring someone to his or her knees, to force someone into submission or compliance.
13. cut (someone) off at the knees, to squelch or humiliate (a person) suddenly and thoroughly: The speaker cut the heckler off at the knees.
14. on one's or its knees,
a. in a supplicatory position or manner: I came to him on my knees for the money.
b. in a desperate or declining condition: The country's economy is on its knees.

Origin:
bef. 900; ME cneo, OE cnēo(w); c. G, D knie, ON knē, Goth kniu, L genu, Gk góny, Skt jānu knee
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To on its knees
Word Origin & History

knee 
O.E. cneo, cneow "knee," from P.Gmc. *knewan (cf. O.N. kne, O.Fris. kni, M.Du. cnie, O.H.G. kniu), from PIE base *g(e)neu- (cf. Skt. janu, Avestan znum, Hittite genu "knee;" Gk. gony "knee," gonia "corner, angle;" L. genu "knee"). The verb meaning "to strike with the knee" is first recorded 1896. Phrase knee-high to a grasshopper first recorded 1851 (earliest form was knee-high to a toad, 1814). Knee-deep is from 1535. Knee-jerk (the patellar reflex) is a neurological phenomenon discovered and named 1876; the figurative use appeared soon after the phrase was coined. Knee-slapper "funny joke" is from 1966.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: knee
Pronunciation: 'nE
Function: noun
1 a : a joint in the middle part of the human leg that is the articulation between the femur,tibia, and patella called also knee joint b : the part of the leg that includes this joint
2 a : the joint in the hind leg of a 4-footed vertebrate thatcorresponds to the human knee b : the carpal joint of the foreleg of a 4-footed vertebrate —kneed /'nEd/ adjective
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

knee (nē)
n.

  1. The joint between the thigh and the lower leg, formed by the articulation of the femur and the tibia and covered anteriorly by the patella.

  2. The region of the leg that encloses and supports this joint.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see on its knees on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us: