knee English · revision 5900

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=c. 825}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /niː/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is Middle English kne, knee, [[inh|ang|cnēo]], cnēow,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) from [[gem-pro|*knewą]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) which also gave Old Saxon kneo, Dutch and German knie, Old Norse kné and Gothic kniu,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) from the PIE root [[ine-pro|*ǵenu-|alt=*genu-|t=knee; angle]],^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) whose descendants include Latin genū, Greek góny, Sanskrit jānu and Hittite genu.^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The joint between the thigh and the lower leg: about 825 in the OED, about 725 in Barnhart.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Phrases of kneeling in worship or supplication are from the late 9th century.^(OED 1989) The verb, to bend the knee or kneel, is from Old English cnēowian, about 1000;^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) to strike with the knee is first recorded in 1892.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989) The ''kneecap'' was a protective covering in 1660 and the bone in 1869, replacing knee pan (1392).^(Barnhart 1988) ''Across one's knee'', of a child being spanked, is from 1759 in the OED and 1866 in Etymonline.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) Knee breeches are from 1827,^(Etymonline) and the knee-slapper, a very funny joke, from 1955.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 825 – the knee.^(OED 1989)

+ * c. 1000 – to kneel.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1392 – knee pan, the kneecap.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1660 – kneecap, a covering.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1827 – knee breeches.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1892 – to strike with the knee.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+ * 1955 – knee-slapper.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # The [[joint]] between the [[thigh]] and the lower leg, or the area around it.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # The upper surface of the thigh of a seated person: ''on her knee''.^(Collins 2023)

+ # The part of a garment that covers the knee.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Something shaped like a bent knee, such as a bent piece of [[pipe]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To hit someone with the knee.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[kneed]]

+ * [[kneecap]]

+ * [[knee-jerk]]

+ * [[kneel]]

+ * [[kneepan]]

+ * [[knees-up]]

+ * [[kneesies]]

+ * [[knee-deep]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[genuflect]]

+ * [[knuckle]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}