KNOCK DOWN

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does knock down mean? 

• KNOCK DOWN (verb)
  The verb KNOCK DOWN has 3 senses:

1. cause to come or go down

2. knock down with force

3. shatter as if by explosion

  Familiarity information: KNOCK DOWN used as a verb is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• KNOCK DOWN (verb)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Cause to come or go down

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Synonyms:

cut down; down; knock down; pull down; push down

Context example:

The mugger knocked down the old lady after she refused to hand over her wallet

Hypernyms (to "knock down" is one way to...):

strike (deliver a sharp blow, as with the hand, fist, or weapon)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "knock down"):

submarine (bring down with a blow to the legs)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something

Sentence example:

The fighter managed to knock down his opponent

Sense 2

Meaning:

Knock down with force

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Synonyms:

coldcock; deck; dump; floor; knock down

Context example:

He decked his opponent

Hypernyms (to "knock down" is one way to...):

beat (hit repeatedly)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s somebody

Derivation:

knockdown (a blow that knocks the opponent off his feet)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Shatter as if by explosion

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Synonyms:

blast; knock down

Hypernyms (to "knock down" is one way to...):

dash; smash (break into pieces, as by striking or knocking over)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

 Context examples 

The high winds and heavy rains can destroy buildings, roads and bridges, and knock down power lines and trees.

(Hurricanes, Federal Emergency Management Agency)

The large pore size also means the team can load a significant amount of siRNA into a single MOF molecule, keeping the dosage needed to knock down the genes very low.

(Nanoparticles used to transport anti-cancer agent to cells, University of Cambridge)

SiRNA molecules can be modified to make them more stable, but this compromises their ability to knock down the target genes.

(Nanoparticles used to transport anti-cancer agent to cells, University of Cambridge)