knackered
Americanadjective
adjective
-
exhausted; tired out
-
worn out; no longer working, esp after long or hard use
Usage
What does knackered mean? Knackered is a British slang word that means exhausted or worn out. Knackered is very informal and is primarily used in the U. K. Example: You can tell the players are a bit knackered after all the extra time in this match.
Etymology
Origin of knackered
First recorded in 1885–90; knacker “to tire” (attenuation of earlier sense “to kill”; cf. knacker ( def. 1 )) + -ed 2
Vocabulary lists containing knackered
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.
Five of the lambs are now being bottle-fed in a neighbouring pen, while two remain with their mother, who Frankland described as "knackered" after the birth.
From BBC ● May 8, 2026
Stokes didn't turn his arm on Friday with assistant coach Jeetan Patel saying he was "knackered" after a stoic 83 with the bat.
From Barron's ● Dec. 20, 2025
Stokes didn't turn over his arm on Friday with assistant coach Jeetan Patel saying he was "knackered" after a stoic 83 with the bat.
From Barron's ● Dec. 20, 2025
"I'm fit and heathy and was still finding it tough going - we were knackered from it," Mark says.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2025
Worse, they looked ragged, clearly knackered by the heat, and were wandering from one side of the course to the other.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
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.
