Definition

1. Verb (transitive):
   • To cause to fall by striking or hitting with force: The primary meaning is to hit someone or something so that they fall to the ground.
   • To demolish or destroy (a structure): To deliberately cause a building or other structure to collapse.
   • To reduce a price or amount significantly: To lower something, especially a price, by a considerable margin.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • The boxer managed to knock down his opponent in the third round.
  • The old factory was knocked down to make way for a new park.
  • The seller knocked down the price by 50% for the quick sale.

Advanced Usage

• "to knock down an argument": To refute or dismantle a point of view or line of reasoning effectively.

  • The lawyer skillfully knocked down the prosecution's main argument.

• "to get knocked down": To be struck and fall; often used figuratively to mean experiencing a setback.

  • You might get knocked down, but it's important to get back up again.

Variants and Related Words

• Knockdown (noun/adjective): As a noun, it can refer to the act of knocking down or something that has been assembled from pre-made parts. As an adjective, it describes something powerful enough to knock someone down or a significantly reduced price.
  • He scored a knockdown in the first minute. (Noun)
  • It was a knockdown argument. (Adjective)
  • We bought a knockdown kit for the bookshelf. (Adjective)

Synonyms

• Fell: To cut down or cause to fall (e.g., a tree).
• Demolish: To completely destroy a building.
• Reduce: To make smaller or less in amount.
• Floor (verb, informal): To knock someone to the ground.

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Knock out: To render unconscious; to eliminate from a competition.

  • This is distinct from "knock down," which means to make fall but not necessarily unconscious.

• Knock over: Very similar to "knock down," often used for objects or accidentally causing something to fall.

  • He accidentally knocked over the vase.

Related Idioms

• Knock 'em dead: An idiom meaning to impress someone greatly, often before a performance. (Note: This idiom uses "knock" but has a completely different meaning from "knock down").
  • Go out on stage and knock 'em dead!

Verb

1. shatter as if by explosion
2. knock down with force
   • He decked his opponent
3. cause to come or go down
   • The policeman downed the heavily armed suspect
   • The mugger knocked down the old lady after she refused to hand over her wallet