noun
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a skilful, ingenious, or resourceful way of doing something
-
a particular talent or aptitude, esp an intuitive one
Etymology
Origin of knack
1325–75; Middle English: trick; perhaps same word as knak sharp-sounding blow, rap, cracking noise (imitative)
Explanation
If you have a knack for doing something, you do it well. You may have a knack for baking cakes or a knack for cracking jokes. These things come easy to you. Although the noun knack refers to a special talent, the sense is that it is a more innate talent — as opposed to a certain technique. So if someone instinctively has a talent for fixing plumbing, for example, you can say they have a knack for it. If, however, they unclog a sink by having a wrench in one hand and a how-to book in the other, then they may have the technique, but they probably don't have the knack.
Vocabulary lists containing knack
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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The Girl Who Drank the Moon
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Just Mercy
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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.
He also had a number of film successes, including in the 1965 film The Knack... and How to Get It, which won the Palme D'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.
From BBC • Aug. 10, 2025
Prior noted what Knack could do when he’s on — mixing pitches and speeds, making for off-balance at-bats.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2025
But he also explained what happens when Knack is off — leaving pitches in the middle zone, while falling behind in counts.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2025
The Mets scored their only other run against Knack — who delivered just the 14th six-inning start of the season for the club — in the third.
From Los Angeles Times • May 25, 2025
Two guards rounded the corner from Knack Street, directly ahead of her.
From "The City of Ember" by Jeanne DuPrau
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.
