Library / English Dictionary

KNIFE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected form: knives   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Edge tool used as a cutting instrument; has a pointed blade with a sharp edge and a handle

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("knife" is a kind of...):

edge tool (any cutting tool with a sharp cutting edge (as a chisel or knife or plane or gouge))

Meronyms (parts of "knife"):

blade (the flat part of a tool or weapon that (usually) has a cutting edge)

point (sharp end)

knife blade (the blade of a knife)

haft; helve (the handle of a weapon or tool)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "knife"):

table knife (a knife used for eating at dining table)

surgical knife (a very sharp knife used in surgery)

slicer (knife especially designed for slicing particular foods, as cheese)

pruning knife (a knife with a curved or hooked blade)

pocket knife; pocketknife (a knife with a blade that folds into the handle; suitable for carrying in the pocket)

parer; paring knife (a small sharp knife used in paring fruits or vegetables)

parang (a stout straight knife used in Malaysia and Indonesia)

linoleum cutter; linoleum knife (a knife having a short stiff blade with a curved point used for cutting linoleum)

letter opener; paper knife; paperknife (dull knife used to cut open the envelopes in which letters are mailed or to slit uncut pages of books)

barong (a knife resembling a cleaver; used in the Philippines)

bolo; bolo knife (long heavy knife with a single edge; of Philippine origin)

Bowie knife (a stout hunting knife with a single edge)

bread knife (a knife used to cut bread)

butcher knife (a large sharp knife for cutting or trimming meat)

carving knife (a large knife used to carve cooked meat)

case knife; sheath knife (a knife with a fixed blade that is carried in a sheath)

chopper; cleaver; meat cleaver (a butcher's knife having a large square blade)

drawknife; drawshave (a woodworker's knife to shave surfaces)

hunting knife (a large sharp knife with a handle shaped to fit the grip)

Derivation:

knife (use a knife on)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A weapon with a handle and blade with a sharp point

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("knife" is a kind of...):

arm; weapon; weapon system (any instrument or instrumentality used in fighting or hunting)

Meronyms (parts of "knife"):

peak; point; tip (a V shape)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "knife"):

bayonet (a knife that can be fixed to the end of a rifle and used as a weapon)

dagger; sticker (a short knife with a pointed blade used for piercing or stabbing)

khukuri (a curved steel knife with a razor-sharp edge used in combat by the Gurkhas; has cultural and religious significance in Nepal)

machete; matchet; panga (a large heavy knife used in Central and South America as a weapon or for cutting vegetation)

shiv (a knife used as a weapon)

trench knife (a knife with a double-edged blade for hand-to-hand fighting)

yataghan (a long Turkish knife with a curved blade having a single edge)

Derivation:

knife (use a knife on)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Any long thin projection that is transient

Example:

rifles exploded quick knives of fire into the dark

Synonyms:

knife; tongue

Classified under:

Nouns denoting two and three dimensional shapes

Hypernyms ("knife" is a kind of...):

projection (any solid convex shape that juts out from something)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Use a knife on

Example:

The victim was knifed to death

Synonyms:

knife; stab

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "knife" is one way to...):

injure; wound (cause injuries or bodily harm to)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "knife"):

poniard (stab with a poniard)

bayonet (stab or kill someone with a bayonet)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s somebody

Sentence example:

They want to knife the prisoners

Derivation:

knife (edge tool used as a cutting instrument; has a pointed blade with a sharp edge and a handle)

knife (a weapon with a handle and blade with a sharp point)

Credits

 Context examples: 

Types of cone biopsy are LEEP (loop electrosurgical excision procedure) and cold knife conization (cold knife cone biopsy).

(Cone biopsy, NCI Dictionary)

Also called cold knife cone biopsy.

(Cold knife conization, NCI Dictionary)

There was a hunting trophy in the hall, and from it I took a straight heavy knife which I sharpened upon my boot.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Then and there they would have plunged their knives into me could they have seen how to escape the consequences of the deed.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Cold knife cone biopsy may also be used to treat certain cervical conditions.

(Cold knife cone biopsy, NCI Dictionary)

The squall of the child went through him like a knife.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

Her knives were twice as long as a scythe, set straight upon the handle.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

Just listen how he is sharpening the knife for it!

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

"Would you like to go?" asked Amy, thoughtfully patting her nose with her knife.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

"He can gnaw through leather as clean as a knife an' jes' about half as quick. They all'll be here in the mornin' hunkydory."

(White Fang, by Jack London)