knock down

British  

verb

1. to strike to the ground with a blow, as in boxing

2. (in auctions) to declare (an article) sold, as by striking a blow with a gavel

3. to demolish

4. to dismantle, for ease of transport

5. informal to reduce (a price, etc)

6. slang to spend (a cheque)

7. slang to drink

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adjective

1. overwhelming; powerful

   a knockdown blow

2. cheap

   I got the table at a knockdown price

3. easily dismantled

   knockdown furniture

noun

1. slang an introduction

   will you give me a knockdown to her?

knock down Idioms  

1. Take apart for storage or shipping, as in We need to knock down this chest to ship it safely overseas . [Mid-1900s]

2. Declare sold at an auction, as by striking a blow with a gavel. For example, That was the last bid, and the first edition was knocked down for only three hundred . [Mid-1700s]

3. Reduce the price of, as in They knocked it down by another hundred dollars , or An overabundant harvest will knock down corn prices . [ Colloquial ; mid-1800].

4. Earn as wages, as in She knocks down a hundred grand a year . [ Slang ; 1920s]

5. Steal, embezzle, as in He was caught knocking down the box-office receipts . This usage may be obsolescent. [ Slang ; mid-1800s] Also see knock over , def. 2.

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Related Words

• annihilate
• bulldoze
• crush
• decimate
• devastate
• dilapidate
• dismantle
• flatten
• obliterate
• overturn
• pulverize
• raze
• ruin
• smash
• trash
• wreck