knapsack
Americannoun
-
knapsacks
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of knapsack
1595–1605; < Low German knappsack, equivalent to knapp a bite (of food) + sack sack 1; compare dialectal English knap to snap up, eat greedily
Explanation
A knapsack is a bag with two straps that you wear over your shoulders, leaving your arms free. Don't forget your knapsack when you head out on that hiking trip! You can also call a knapsack a "backpack" or a "rucksack." The word knapsack is thought to be the oldest of these terms, and while "backpack" is more often used today in the U.S., knapsack is more common in Canada. It comes from the German knappen, "to bite," and some experts believe that the name evolved from the fact that soldiers carried food in their knapsacks.
Vocabulary lists containing knapsack
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:
They strapped on a machine that looks a bit like a knapsack and provides a robotic boost for the lower back.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 31, 2024
The Champagne — worth $2,900 in all — was pulled out of Gonzalez’ knapsack and returned to the guests who had ordered it, according to prosecutors.
From Seattle Times ● May 15, 2023
Adelekan said the man’s knapsack was blown up in a controlled explosion after the suspect told officers to handle it with care.
From Washington Times ● May 3, 2023
Inside Kerouac’s weather-beaten knapsack and wrapped in a newspaper, Mr. Lord recalled, was a manuscript that Kerouac handed gingerly to him.
From New York Times ● Sep. 4, 2022
Her knapsack waited by the door, and she lay in bed unable to sleep.
From "Huntress" by Malinda Lo
The blaze was brought under control by 22:30 using jets, beaters and knapsacks.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2025
They tried to stay clean and healthy, stopping as often as they could at laundromats to empty their tattered knapsacks, filled with weeks-old dirty clothing and sleeping bags, into washing machines.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 19, 2021
Out to test the police response to a peaceful campout in the heart of the beast, this platoon, singing and laughing, had barely opened their knapsacks when the police materialized.
From Salon ● Oct. 30, 2021
Some carried small children or held them by the hand as they walked up the side of the highway, their few possessions in knapsacks or plastic bags.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 2, 2021
By the time I got the money doled out, the boys were dressed and Mrs. Diamant was stuffing empty bottles into knapsacks, because there was no water coming from the pipes.
From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron
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.
