knock down

verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"knock-down" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“knock down” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a verb - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
10
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To hit or collide with

Key facts for knock down
PropertyValue
Headwordknock down
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
Letters10
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “knock down” sits in English frequency

knock down falls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for knock down is 10 letters long, classified as a verb. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 17 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

knock down doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct English form is knock down, spelled K-N-O-C-K- -D-O-W-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    To hit or collide with
  2. 2
    To hit or collide with
  3. 3
    To hit or collide with
  4. 4
    To hit or collide with
  5. 5
    To acquire money, especially illicitly
  6. 6
    To acquire money, especially illicitly
  7. 7
    To drink or party
  8. 8
    To drink or party
  9. 9
    To choose, declare or approve.
  10. 10
    To choose, declare or approve.
  11. 11
    To choose, declare or approve.
  12. 12
    To choose, declare or approve.
  13. 13
    To choose, declare or approve.
  14. 14
    To choose, declare or approve.
  15. 15
    To choose, declare or approve.
  16. 16
    To send a stop signal to ensure a train is signalled to stop at the correct point.
  17. 17
    To reduce the burning of (a fire), as by cooling it with water or dirt.

Synonyms

knock overdemolishdestroysellreduce

This word in other languages

derribar(Español)renverser(Français)umwerfen(Deutsch)derrubar(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "knock down"?
"knock down" is spelled K-N-O-C-K- -D-O-W-N.
What does "knock down" mean?
As a verb, "knock down" means: To hit or collide with
What language does "knock down" come from?
"knock down" is a English word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “knock down”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is K-N-O-C-K- -D-O-W-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list