# bring someone to their knees

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/bring-someone-to-their-knees
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

To defeat and make submit to orders.

## Origin

Derived from the physical posture of kneeling as a gesture of submission before an individual in power. The image is one of enforced supplication, preserved in the language as a marker of total defeat.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.