# knave

> English word · Noun · IPA /neɪv/ · frequency rank #53,050

## Definitions
1. A boy; especially, a boy servant.
2. Any male servant; a menial.
3. A tricky, deceitful fellow; a dishonest person.
4. A playing card marked with the figure of a servant or a soldier.

## Etymology
From Middle English knave, knafe, from Old English cnafa (“child, boy, youth; servant”), from Proto-West Germanic *knabō. Cognate to Dutch knaap and German Knabe.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/knave