knife

[nahyf]

noun

plural

knives 

1. an instrument for cutting, consisting essentially of a thin, sharp-edged, metal blade fitted with a handle.

2. a knifelike weapon; dagger or short sword.

3. any blade for cutting, as in a tool or machine.

verb (used with object)

knifed, knifing 

1. to apply a knife to; cut, stab, etc., with a knife.

2. to attempt to defeat or undermine in a secret or underhanded way.

verb (used without object)

knifed, knifing 

1. to move or cleave through something with or as if with a knife.

   The ship knifed through the heavy seas.

knife

/ naɪf /

noun

1. a cutting instrument consisting of a sharp-edged often pointed blade of metal fitted into a handle or onto a machine

2. a similar instrument used as a weapon

3. to have a grudge against or victimize someone

4. to make a bad situation worse in a deliberately malicious way

5. people are determined to harm or put a stop to someone

   the knives are out for Stevens

6. undergoing a surgical operation

verb

1. to cut, stab, or kill with a knife

2. to betray, injure, or depose in an underhand way

Other Word Forms

• knifelike adjective
• knifer noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of knife¹

before 1100; Middle English knif, Old English cnīf; cognate with Dutch knijf, German Kneif, Old Norse knīfr

Word History and Origins

Origin of knife¹

Old English cnīf; related to Old Norse knīfr, Middle Low German knīf

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. under the knife, in surgery; undergoing a medical operation.

   The patient was under the knife for four hours.

see at gunpoint (knifepoint); under the knife; you could cut it with a knife.

Example Sentences

The jury was shown pictures and videos from his phone showing him smoking cannabis before the incident, and also of several knives which he had bought and had at home.

Read more on BBC

Hand-wash a chef’s knife or a nonstick pan, and you can dry it for storage without grabbing a towel.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

It reminds me of a Swiss Army knife: The blade has turned into our browsers, cutting through questions in seconds.

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The judge also quoted Fifth Third’s lawyer, who likened accepting the bourbon barrels as the loan payment to “being asked to catch a falling knife.”

Read more on Wall Street Journal

Much of what is happening in healthcare investing is a healthcare specialist/hedge fund knife fight.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• bayonet 
• blade 
• cutter 
• dagger 
• machete 
• scalpel 
• sickle 
• skewer 
• sword