Etymologically
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knock

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /nɒk/, US /nɑːk/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English knoken, inherited from Old English cnocian (West Saxon cnucian),[2][3][4] probably imitative of the sound,[2][3][4][5] like Middle High German knochen “to press” and Old Norse knoka “to hit, beat”.[6][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

To strike with a sounding blow, as on a door: about 1000 in the OED and Barnhart.[7][3]

Semantic evolution

To strike hard, without reference to the sound, is from before 1300.[7] The noun is from the mid-14th century, 1333–52 in Barnhart,[2][3] and knocker from before 1382, in the Wycliffe Bible.[3] To make a woman pregnant is from 1598, and knocked up from the early 19th century.[7][5] Knock it on the head, to put an end to a plan, was established by the late 16th century.[5] Several phrases come from the auctioneer's hammer, such as knock down (1760).[2] To astonish is from 1715, and to impress from 1883.[7] To criticize, knock, is American from 1892.[2][7][5] The knocking of an engine is from 1869 for the verb and 1899 for the noun.[2] Knock back a drink is from 1931,[2] and knockout in boxing from 1887.[3]

Timeline

  • c. 1000 – to strike with a sound.[7]
  • mid-14th century – the noun.[2]
  • 1598 – to make pregnant.[7]
  • 1760 – knock down at auction.[2]
  • 1869 – of an engine.[2]
  • 1887 – knockout.[3]
  • 1892 – to criticize.[2]

Modern meaning

Verb

  1. To hit a door or other surface to attract attention.
  2. To hit or push, often by accident: knocked his head.
  3. To make something by hitting: to knock a hole in the wall.
  4. (informal) To criticize.
  5. Of an engine, to make a knocking noise.

Noun

  1. A sharp blow, or the sound of hitting a door.
  2. A setback or misfortune.

Word family

  • knockless
  • antiknock
  • knock-knee
  • no-knock
  • school of hard knocks
  • knock rummy
  • knocker
  • knockout
  • knock-kneed

Usage notes

Knock, a hill, is a different word, from Gaelic and Irish cnoc “knoll”, found in Scots place names.[8][9]

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  9. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)