knock out
Idioms-
Also, knock out cold . Render unconscious by a blow or some other means. For example, It was just a swinging door, but it knocked her out , or Just one of those sleeping pills can knock you out cold . [Late 1500s]
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Make tired, exhaust, as in That sightseeing tour knocked me out .
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Render useless or inoperative, as in The storm knocked out the power .
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See knock off , def. 2.
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See knock oneself out .
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 evidence -- that you can knock out PRX3 in mice and there's no adverse phenotype -- supports our approach."
From Science Daily ● Sep. 17, 2026
Nor does the Minnesota Wild defenseman hit the hardest or knock out the most teeth.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 3, 2026
So don’t expect $28 tickets for finals or knock out rounds to the most in-demand sports including women’s artistic gymnastics, basketball, swimming or track and field to be sold at all.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 15, 2026
League One side Port Vale knock out Premier League team Sunderland to reach the FA Cup quarter-finals for the first time since 1954.
From BBC ● Mar. 8, 2026
Radiation might knock out a piece of the cell’s DNA, change the structure of the cell wall, or alter the thickness of the fluid in the cell.
From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland
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.
