genuflect
Americanverb (used without object)
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to bend the knee or touch one knee to the floor in reverence or worship.
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to express a servile attitude.
verb
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to act in a servile or deferential manner
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RC Church to bend one or both knees as a sign of reverence, esp when passing before the Blessed Sacrament
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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genuflectsimple
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genuflectssimple
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have genuflectedperfect
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has genuflectedperfect
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am genuflectingprogressive
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are genuflectingprogressive
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is genuflectingprogressive
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have been genuflectingperfect progressive
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has been genuflectingperfect progressive
Past
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genuflectedsimple
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had genuflectedperfect
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was genuflectingprogressive
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were genuflectingprogressive
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had been genuflectingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of genuflect
1620–30; < Medieval Latin genūflectere to bend the knee, equivalent to Latin genū-, stem of genu knee + flectere to bend
Explanation
If you are genuflecting, you are on your knees — either physically or in spirit. Politicians are experts at genuflecting to whatever idea or person is most popular at the time. In the old days, when you came in front of your social superiors, you were expected to genuflect: that is, bend your knee and bow submissively. You did it before kings and nobles, and everyone did it in church before God. In our more egalitarian age, genuflecting has taken on a rather insincere and servile meaning. Best not to genuflect, but simply to admire.
Vocabulary lists containing genuflect
100 SAT Words Beginning with "G"
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Bless Me, Ultima
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The Bluest Eye
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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:
Shows like “Top Chef” teach us to genuflect at the altars of celebrity culinarians, viewing their restaurants and signature dishes as luxury experiences as opposed to showing regular folks how to think innovatively about dinner.
From Salon ● Jan. 30, 2026
Turn off your cellphones and get ready to genuflect because Patti LuPone, musical theater royalty, is heading to the Hollywood Bowl on July 30 for a one-night tribute to Sondheim.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 9, 2023
But beyond the ambition to warp genres, he’s also refused to genuflect to industry conventions, especially ones for Spanish-speaking artists.
From New York Times ● May 6, 2022
“Every time I pass one,” he said, “I genuflect and say, ‘Thank you for the house, my kids’ education and the fact that we don’t have to eat cheese grits anymore.’
From Washington Post ● May 26, 2021
Every time I stepped into his office, I felt the need to genuflect.
From "The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates" by Wes Moore
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 ● Nov. 21, 2025
Without anything divine to revere, American home and landscape design largely genuflects at the altar of the market.
From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2025
The woman who holds the head genuflects with her soaking parcel.
From The Guardian ● Feb. 22, 2020
But “The Andromeda Evolution” genuflects appropriately to the 1969 novel that instantly infected pop culture.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 11, 2019
By the cross the priest is reminded of the death of Our Lord; he genuflects as an act of humility, and he strikes his breast to show his own unworthiness.
From Baltimore Catechism, No. 4 An Explanation of the Baltimore Catechism of Christian Doctrine by Kinkead, Thomas L.
He hired people because they genuflected to him, not because they had any expertise.
From Salon ● Mar. 29, 2023
I don’t recall whether we rose and genuflected upon the arrival of Big John, but doing so would’ve been appropriate.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 2, 2020
“The delivery guy genuflected and backed away slowly, never turned his back on the grave.”
From New York Times ● Oct. 5, 2018
As he is wont to do, Bill Shaikin once again genuflected at the Dodger altar and — cue the harp music — sang the praises of Chase Utley.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 23, 2018
Metaphorically, however, he genuflected to the land of the Vikings.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
As the Washington Post's media reporter put it: "Everyone is genuflecting before the Pentagon powerhouse… America's new rock star."
From Salon ● Sep. 11, 2023
The figures, dubbed the “kneeling attendants” by curators, crouch as if genuflecting.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 5, 2021
At the Los Angeles Central Library, the Oaxacan collective Tlacolulokos painted a glorious mural depicting contemporary Indigenous Zapotec culture, supplanting the library’s mural from 1933, which showed Native Americans genuflecting to European colonialists.
From New York Times ● Sep. 2, 2020
“I’d rather this whole thing just be over,” he said as he peeled off his mask after genuflecting toward the tabernacle, passing Cowles and walking out of church on a recent Sunday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2020
“Sorrento has tried everything but genuflecting, doing a little dance, and sticking his pinky finger in the keyhole.”
From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline
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.
