kneel

verb

ˈnēl 

knelt ˈnelt  or kneeled; kneeling

intransitive verb

: to position the body so that one or both knees rest on the floor

The prisoners were ordered to kneel.

: to fall or rest on the knees

She kneeled on the floor next to the child.

Examples of kneel in a Sentence

She was kneeling on the floor beside her child.

He was kneeling in front of the altar and praying.

Recent Examples on the Web

At the end of Tuesday’s news conference featuring several local leaders, KNBC reporter Robert Kovacik, who was kneeling in the front row out of sight from the cameras, stood up and leaned over the tape line. — Meg James, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026

Four of Las Vegas’ offensive possessions (before the final possession, which was a kneel-down series in scoring territory) started at midfield, or less than 5 yards shy of it. — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 15 Sep. 2026

But Allen threw for 334 yards and Buffalo scored on eight of its 11 possessions before kneeling down to win coach Joe Brady’s first game. — ABC News, 14 Sep. 2026

The Giants run the rest of the time off the clock and kneel it out. — Jim Barnes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English knelen, from Old English cnēowlian; akin to Old English cnēow knee

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for kneel

• beal
• chiel
• ciel
• creel
• deal
• diel
• eel
• feel
• feil
• heal
• heel
• keel

Kids Definition

kneel

verb

ˈnē(ə)l 

knelt ˈnelt  or kneeled

ˈnē(ə)ld

; kneeling

: to bend the knee : support oneself on the knees

kneeler noun