kneel
Americanverb (used without object)
-
kneels,
present (3rd person singular)
-
knelt,
past participle, past
-
kneeled,
past participle, past
-
kneeling
present participle
noun
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
kneelsimple
-
kneelssimple
-
have kneeledperfect
-
have kneltperfect
-
has kneeledperfect
-
has kneltperfect
-
am kneelingprogressive
-
are kneelingprogressive
-
is kneelingprogressive
-
have been kneelingperfect progressive
-
has been kneelingperfect progressive
Past
-
kneeledsimple
-
kneltsimple
-
had kneeledperfect
-
had kneltperfect
-
was kneelingprogressive
-
were kneelingprogressive
-
had been kneelingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of kneel
First recorded before 1000; Middle English knelen, Old English cnēowlian (cognate with Low German knelen, Dutch knielen ). See knee, -le
Explanation
When you kneel, you rest your bent knees on the ground. People kneel to pray, to work in the garden, and to do yoga. Kids often kneel on the living room rug to play, and adults kneel to tie a child's shoelaces, to vacuum under the sofa, to play with a puppy, to exercise, and for many other reasons. A great thing about the word kneel is that its meaning is easy to see — the word knee is obvious when you look at it. The Old English root word, cnēowlian, simply means kneel, and it comes from cnēow, or "knee."
Vocabulary lists containing kneel
Unit 1: Telling Details
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"Encounter"
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Words with Two Past-Tense Forms That Creeped (or Crept) into English
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
While he did receive support, he couldn’t anticipate Nate Boyer’s attempts to profit from the protest and steal credit from Kaepernick teammate Eric Reid for the idea to kneel.
From Salon ● Sep. 29, 2026
The noise gradually fades and the rescuers climb the rubble, kneel and bow their heads.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
With only 18 seconds left after that game-tying score, the Rams opted to kneel and send the game to overtime.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 19, 2026
It’s kind of like Ramses in the movie “The Ten Commandments” when he says, “Command them to kneel before Pharaoh.”
From Salon ● Apr. 24, 2025
But when it came time to kneel before the basket, he shook just as badly.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
In another, “Mao’s Guilt,” the late Chinese leader kneels with his hand over his heart, seemingly in a display of penance.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
Seeing all this, a woman kneels and cries out between sobs.
From Barron's ● Jul. 4, 2026
The croc is famously seen in the scene where Kozlowski's character is attacked as she kneels next to a creek.
From BBC ● Dec. 23, 2024
Hawk kneels at Tim’s quilt square and gives words to the truth he’s carried in his heart for 3½ decades: “He was the man I loved.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2024
Then he slides into a pew and kneels to pray.
From "You Bring the Distant Near" by Mitali Perkins
On Tuesday in Glen Allen, onlookers kneeled and offered fruit, police officers shook the monks' hands, and the monks presented people with blessing threads and other gifts.
From Barron's ● Feb. 3, 2026
South Florida's NBC6 reports the men kneeled, clapped their hands together, and waved their shirts at the passing helicopter.
From Salon ● Jun. 5, 2025
Before chairs with a back and arm rests debuted as a status symbol among ancient Egyptians about 5,000 years ago, he says that humans mostly kneeled or squatted for about 2 million years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 7, 2025
In the potato-chip aisle, a woman kneeled on the floor, diligently unpacking boxes, filling the shelves with chips, then reversing the process and repeating it several times over.
From Slate ● Dec. 4, 2024
He crawled out of his bed, tiptoed across the room, and kneeled down on mine.
From "Root Magic" by Eden Royce
Upon leaving her house, where he knelt on the floor mutely asking for her forgiveness, he notices piles of leaves everywhere he looks.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2026
When they walked from the military transports, some of them knelt on the tarmac and kissed the ground.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 23, 2026
She knelt in front of the first officer she saw, told him she’d fled the colectivos, and pleaded for a chance to seek asylum.
From Slate ● Jan. 15, 2026
Twelve fired FBI agents are alleging that they were unlawfully sacked because they knelt during a racial justice protest in Washington DC five years ago.
From BBC ● Dec. 9, 2025
As she knelt to bind him, Ashmodai howled, “What, do you enjoy this cage? You would condemn us to shadow, together forever?”
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
About 40% of people in their 60s have some difficulty crouching, kneeling or stooping.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026
He was found kneeling in front of a piano and striking the keys, in apparent distress.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2026
SHANGHAI—The ancient Dragon Flower Temple these days is full of young people burning incense, chanting mantras and kneeling in front of Buddhist statues.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026
"There is no evidence of any image showing Emmanuel Macron kneeling to present a royal decoration," the official told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026
She showed me a bunch of stretches—sitting, kneeling, standing—that she said warmed up hamstrings, side muscles, and knees.
From "Maybe He Just Likes You" by Barbara Dee
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
