knapp
German, adjective/knap/
knapp is spelled K-N-A-P-P (5 letters) and appears 85 times per million words in written German, the 1,019th most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Knapp is a German adjective meaning “scarce” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The German Wiktionary defines it as “gerade noch ausreichend; weniger als das, was man eigentlich braucht oder gerne hätte”.
What does knapp mean in English?
adjective
- 1
scarce
- 2
lean (having little extra)
- 3
somewhat less (than)
ein knappes Jahr
- 4
short or tight
- 5
a close call, a narrow escape
Das war knapp. Wir wären fast abgestürzt!
adverb
- 1
narrowly, just, barely
Wir sind knapp pünktlich.
- 2
somewhat less than, almost
Sein Sohn ist knapp acht Jahre alt.
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
adjective: 1. gerade noch ausreichend; weniger als das, was man eigentlich braucht oder gerne hätte 2. etwas kleiner als angegeben 3. mit nur wenig (kleinst möglichem) Abstand 4. kurz oder (fast) zu eng
The definition in the German Wiktionary, in German.
Source: German Wiktionary, dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of knapp
- knapper masculine nominative singular
- am knappsten superlative
- knappe feminine nominative singular
- knappes neuter nominative singular
- knappen genitive masculine singular
- knappem dative masculine singular
- der knappe definite includes-article masculine
- die knappe definite feminine includes-article
- das knappe definite includes-article neuter
- die knappen definite includes-article nominative
- des knappen definite genitive includes-article
- der knappen definite feminine genitive
- dem knappen dative definite includes-article
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce knapp?
- /knap/
- [knap]
Sources: English Wiktionary, German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to knapp
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is knapp in German?
knapp appears 85 times per million words in written German.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).