genuflect

American  

[jen-yoo-flekt] / ˈdʒɛn yʊˌflɛkt /

verb (used without object)

1. to bend the knee or touch one knee to the floor in reverence or worship.

2. to express a servile attitude.

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genuflect British  

/ ˈdʒɛnjʊˌflɛkt /

verb

1. to act in a servile or deferential manner

2. RC Church to bend one or both knees as a sign of reverence, esp when passing before the Blessed Sacrament

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Other Word Forms

• genuflection noun
• genuflector noun

Etymology

Origin of genuflect

1620–30; < Medieval Latin genūflectere to bend the knee, equivalent to Latin genū-, stem of genu knee + flectere to bend

Example Sentences

Mapplethorpe genuflects at the altar of that icon with a platinum portrait of Warhol, backed by a halo of light and surrounded by silk panels that form a cross.

From The Wall Street Journal

The clip in question sees Deen sitting in the “Today Show” studio, practically genuflecting to the camera after being grilled for 15 straight minutes on live television.

From Salon

Without anything divine to revere, American home and landscape design largely genuflects at the altar of the market.

From Salon

He’s genuflecting and appears penitent, it’s him with no public or private, shipwrecked in place in a way.

From Los Angeles Times

He prefers the illusion of power offered by genuflecting yes-men over the hard work involved in gaining real power and exercising it.

From Salon