knee-deep
Americanadjective
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reaching the knees.
knee-deep mud.
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submerged or covered up to the knees.
knee-deep in water.
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deeply embroiled; enmeshed; involved.
knee-deep in trouble.
adjective
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so deep as to reach or cover the knees
knee-deep mud
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sunk or covered to the knees
knee-deep in sand
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immersed; deeply involved
knee-deep in work
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Etymology
Origin of knee-deep
First recorded in 1525–35
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.
The temporary ice rink was constructed in the centre of the town's piazza, leaving Pavrotti's statue knee-deep in ice and surrounded by perspex walls.
From BBC
Six months after Liar’s Poker was published, I was knee-deep in letters from students at Ohio State University who wanted to know if I had any other secrets to share about Wall Street.
From Literature
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One slope climbed so high that she rose up from the ocean surface and continued on, wading through knee-deep water.
From Literature
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Rescuers and relatives searched knee-deep in water for the body of one-year-old Zara.
From BBC
In Jamaica, the impact was most severe in the southwestern parish of St Elizabeth, where knee-deep mud and washed-out bridges left towns such as Black River cut off.
From BBC
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.