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Glite Dictionary
to knock at someone's door

to knock at someone's door

5.4
To appear as a good chance for you
  • phrasal verb
  • Informal
translation icon : tocar a la puerta
  • A great business deal is knocking at your door, so don't miss it.

Examples

  • ♪ Tearing the streets and she's lying at your feet ♪ ♪ And she's bleeding on the floor ♪ ♪ And she's knocking at your door ♪ ♪ Oh, I want her ♪ ♪ Oh I want her ♪ - ♪ Oh, I need her ♪ - This is awful.

    Stardust (2020)

  • New chances may soon be knocking at your door—be ready to seize them.

  • See, I might be a victim of my own expectation here, but when the great Benoit Blanc comes knocking at my door, I expect it's going to be about something, if not extraordinary, then at least interesting.

    Knives Out (2019)

  • When opportunity knocks at her door, she always makes the most of it.

Synonyms

to come knocking
vsto knock at someone's door
22 5.2

To appear unexpectedly, like at your door, asking for help or a chance

indicates an available opportunity presenting itself for consideration or action
to come calling
vsto knock at someone's door
  • Informal
14 6.3

To arrive without warning and often bring good or bad results

marks an opportunity becoming available rather than causing consequences

Surface Forms

knock at someone's door infinitive
knocked at someone's door past
knocked at someone's door past participle
knocking at someone's door present participle
knocks at someone's door third person singular

Morphology

knock + at + someone's + door

The phrase maps the literal image of someone knocking on a door onto the arrival or presentation of an opportunity, so learners who know 'knock', 'door' and the possessive construction will likely infer that something is approaching or offering itself. However, the shift from a physical knocking event to the abstract sense 'an opportunity becomes available' is a conventionalized metaphor and not fully predictable from the parts, making it only partially transparent.

Etymology

Knock at someone's door comes from the simple picture of a visitor tapping the door to get your attention and offer news or help. One popular image is that when an opportunity knocks, it shows up for you to notice and maybe take. So, 'knock at someone's door' means a chance is appearing or 'becoming available'.