knock up
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Verb (transitive, informal, chiefly British):
- To make pregnant; to impregnate. This is a direct, often crude or slang expression for causing a woman to become pregnant.
Usage
- This verb is used with a direct object (the person who becomes pregnant).
- It is highly informal and can be considered vulgar or offensive. It is typically used in very casual, and often disrespectful, contexts.
- Important Note: The phrasal verb "knock up" has a completely different and non-vulgar meaning in American English (to wake someone by knocking, or to make or assemble something hastily). The definition provided here is for the British English slang usage.
Examples
Advanced Usage
- The phrase is almost always used in the passive voice ("to get knocked up") when referring to the woman's experience.
- She's afraid she might get knocked up.
- It can carry strong connotations of irresponsibility, accident, or lack of commitment.
Variants and Related Words
- Knocked up (adjective, informal): Pregnant.
- She is knocked up.
Synonyms
- Impregnate (more formal/clinical)
- Get pregnant (neutral)
- Get with child (archaic)
Important Distinction (American English)
- Knock up (American English Phrasal Verb):
- To awaken someone by knocking at their door.
- Could you knock me up at 7 AM?
- To make or assemble something quickly and often crudely.
- I'll knock up a quick dinner from what's in the fridge.
- He knocked up a basic website in an afternoon.
- These American usages are not vulgar and are contextually distinct from the British slang definition.
Verb
- make pregnant
- He impregnated his wife again