knuckle down

verb

1. informal,  (intr, adverb) to apply oneself diligently

   to knuckle down to some work

Idioms and Phrases

Apply oneself seriously to some task or goal, as in The professor insisted that we knuckle down and get our papers in by Friday . Both this term and the rhyming synonym buckle down date from the 1860s, but the precise allusion in either is unclear.

See knuckle under .

Example Sentences

After the Christchurch tragedies, twin shootings that took 51 lives, she showed the most heartfelt empathy, then knuckled down and got assault weapons off the streets.

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"I had a word with myself after the first set - I needed to really knuckle down and focus and I knew his level wasn't really going to drop," Draper added.

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However the pair simply knuckled down and went back to work, with gigs and releasing music.

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After the last summer I just needed to knuckle down, game by game, and play well.

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We will knuckle down and get going again.

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