🦵 A leg joint 🤜 To strike

knee

∞ 1.0

A joint where the thigh meets the lower leg

noun
/niː/

: rodilla

The lower part of Lexi's left leg, just below the knee, had been completely severed.
fall to one's knees
knee joint
knee-length

But yeah, it's side box jumps, high knees, leg complex, right squatting.

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Examples

We will look at the strength of your ankle, knee, hip, elbow and hands.
Faigan and Thomas are down on their knees scrubbing the floor of their cell.

Fiction book (1990)
So here is the knee on this leg.
I landed right with my knee right on it.
Do I control whether my knees begin to hurt or not?
You will lose a stone by Christmas and your knees will not hurt anymore.

Academic text (2011)
Now I want you to get on your knees and pray.

Eating Miss Campbell (2022)
The boy wondered whether his father's knee hurt as badly as his own hand.

Fiction book (1990)
Green Water gasped, falling on her knees beside him to brush snow from his cheeks.

Fiction book (1990)
The doctor examined my knee to check for any signs of injury.

Synonyms

knee joint

vsknee

2 2.3

The place where the thigh meets the lower leg, protected by a kneecap

is the general joint found in many animals where thigh meets lower leg

genu

vsknee

Specialized

9.9

The knee joint where the thigh bone meets the shin bones, protected by the kneecap

is the everyday name for that same joint across animals

articulatio genus

vsknee

Specialized

7.7

The joint at the knee that lets the leg bend

is the common-language term used for the joint in many species

Idioms

to bend the knee

1 8.4

To show loyalty and obey a powerful person

knee-high to a grasshopper

Informal

1 9.1

Very small and young, especially a child

knee-deep in the Big Muddy

Informal

9.9

Deeply stuck in a difficult situation that is hard to leave

Compounds

knee-deep

Informal

13 3.9

Very involved in something, like work or problems

one knee

13 2.4

A kneeling position with one knee on the ground often used to propose marriage

knee-deep

5 3.1

Water or mud that reaches up to the knees

knee pad

5 1.3

A soft pad worn over the knee to protect it during work or sport

knee-length

3 2.9

Long enough to reach the knee, like a dress or coat

knee brace

3 3.2

A support worn around the knee to protect and keep it stable

knee jerk

3 4.3

Lower leg suddenly kicks out when the area below the kneecap is tapped

knee-high

2 3.5

Reaching up to the knees

knee joint

2 2.3

The place where the thigh meets the lower leg, protected by a kneecap

knee slapper

Informal

1 6.8

A very funny joke that makes people laugh loudly

knee-high

1 2.7

A sock that reaches up to just below the knees

knee bend

1 3.3

An exercise where you bend your knees to lower and raise your body to make your leg muscles stronger

knee breeches

Archaic

1 9.9

Short trousers fastened just below the knee, worn by men in the 1600s and 1700s

knee pants

Archaic

1 9.9

Short trousers that reach to the knee and are often worn by boys

knee-jerk reflex

Specialized

1 3.9

A sudden automatic kick of the lower leg when the tendon below the kneecap is tapped

knee piece

Archaic

9.9

A curved metal plate that protects the knee in armor

knee-hi

5.1

A long sock that reaches just below the knee

knock-knee

8.2

Knees that turn inward and touch when the legs are straight

human knee

2.4

The joint between the thigh and the shin, covered by the kneecap

housemaid's knee

Specialized

8.6

Swelling at the front of the knee caused by kneeling or injury

thick-knee

Specialized

9.9

A large wading bird with big eyes and a thick knee joint

water on the knee

Specialized

6.5

A swelling of the knee caused by extra fluid in the joint

Surface Forms

knee singular

knees plural

Etymology

Knee comes from an old German word for the joint you use to 'bend' your leg, and it is the same idea behind the word kneel, which means to bend down on your knee. So a knee is the part of the leg that lets you 'bend' and 'kneel'.