knee-deep
Americanadjective
-
reaching the knees.
knee-deep mud.
-
submerged or covered up to the knees.
knee-deep in water.
-
deeply embroiled; enmeshed; involved.
knee-deep in trouble.
adjective
-
so deep as to reach or cover the knees
knee-deep mud
-
-
sunk or covered to the knees
knee-deep in sand
-
immersed; deeply involved
knee-deep in work
-
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.
It’s worth trying, if only to remind yourself, when you’re knee-deep in a pristine, quiet bay, what makes the island special in the first place.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 20, 2026
Anyone using them for mission-critical tasks today will eventually find themselves knee-deep in a catastrophe.
From Barron's ● Feb. 6, 2026
Less than a mile away from the Meta Campus, Menlo Park residents on Wednesday woke up to rising knee-deep floodwaters and possible evacuation warnings.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 24, 2025
Rescuers and relatives searched knee-deep in water for the body of one-year-old Zara.
From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2025
Balancing knee-deep in the surging water, Malcolm swung the rucksack up.
From "The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage" by Philip Pullman
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.
