knot

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   A fastening made by tying a piece of rope, string, or cord.

   They made a sturdy knot while tying up the boat.

2. 2
   verb

   To tie something into a knot.

   He knotted his shoelaces tightly.

3. 3
   noun

   A small, tight group of people or things.

   A small knot of parishioners listened to the sermon.

4. 4
   noun

   A hard round spot in wood where a branch once grew.

   The saw buckled when it hit a knot.

From Middle English knotte, from Old English cnotta, from Proto-West Germanic *knottō, from Proto-Germanic *knuttô, *knudô (“knot”); probably ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gnod- (“to bind”). See also Old High German knoto (German Knoten, Dutch knot, Low German Knütte; also Old Norse knútr > Danish knude, Swedish knut, Norwegian knute, Faroese knútur, Icelandic hnútur; also Latin nōdus and its Romance descendants. Doublet of knout, node, and nodus. * (unit of speed): From the practice of counting the number of knots in the logline (as it is paid out) in a standard time. Traditionally spa…

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