knife
n. countablen. a tool with a sharp blade and a handle. You use it for cutting food or other objects.
n. an instrument composed of a sharp-edged blade attached to a handle, used primarily for cutting or as a weapon.
Please use a sharp knife to cut the bread.
The chef carefully sharpened every knife in the kitchen before the dinner service began.
Archaeological evidence suggests that the transition from stone to bronze knives marked a significant shift in the efficiency of both domestic tasks and early combat.
From Middle English knyf, knif, from late Old English cnīf, from Old Norse knífr, from Proto-Germanic knībaz, from knīpaną (“to pinch”), Proto-Indo-European *gneybʰ- (compare Lithuanian gnýbti, žnýbti (“to pinch”), gnaibis (“pinching”)). Displaced native Middle English sax (“knife”) from Old English seax; and Middle English coutel, qwetyll (“knife”) from Old French coutel. The verb knife is attested since the 1860s; the variant knive is attested since 1733. Cognates Cognate with Yola kunnife (“knife”), North Frisian knif (“knife”), Dutch knijf (“long pointy knife, poniard”), German Knifte (“rifle; thick slicebread”), German Low German Knief (“knife”), Luxembourgish Knäip (“paring knife”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål and Norwegian Nynorsk kniv (“knife”), Faroese knívur (“knife”), Icelandic hnífur, knífur (“knife”), Swedish knif, kniv (“knife”).
The plural form is irregular: 'knives'.
I need two knifesI need two knivesNouns ending in -fe typically change to -ves in the plural form.
- 01
bring a knife to a gunfight
To enter into a confrontation or other challenging situation without being adequately equipped or prepared.
- 02
catch a falling knife
To buy a financial instrument whose price is falling rapidly.
- 03
stick the knife in
To say or do something deliberately and unnecessarily malicious.