knight

play

noun \ ˈnīt \

Definition of knight

1 a (1) :a mounted man-at-arms serving a feudal superior; especially :a man ceremonially inducted into special military rank usually after completing service as page and squire

(2) :a man honored by a sovereign for merit and in Great Britain ranking below a baronet

(3) :a person of antiquity equal to a knight in rank

b :a man devoted to the service of a lady as her attendant or champion

c :a member of an order or society

2 :either of two pieces of each color in a set of chessmen having the power to make an L-shaped move of two squares in one row and one square in a perpendicular row over squares that may be occupied

See knight defined for English-language learners

See knight defined for kids

Examples of knight in a Sentence

He was made a knight.

Recent Examples of knight from the Web

Their online personas — knights, Vikings, reincarnations of Charles Martel — will be familiar enough to anybody with a Dungeons and Dragons nerd in his life.

— kevin d. williamson, National Review, "Angry White Boys," 16 Aug. 2017
Jorah is a fierce warrior and a knight—maybe his extensive knowledge in swords will come to his advantage too.

— erica gonzales, Harper's BAZAAR, "Jorah Doesn't Know That Jon Snow Has a Mormont Family Heirloom," 15 Aug. 2017
Golden birds, talking servants, mechanical musicians, and armed knights fill history books across every age and culture of humankind.

— daniel wilson, Ars Technica, "How to build an ancient robot overlord," 1 Aug. 2017
The Dark Tower Based on Stephen King's series of novels about a young boy and a frontiersman knight on an interdimensional quest.

— kevin crust, latimes.com, "Movie openings, Aug. 4," 30 July 2017
He has been trained in arms, as befits a knight to be, but that was not the end of his education.

— matt miller, Esquire, "This Game of Thrones Theory Might Hold the Key to Varys's True Loyalties," 26 July 2017
No word on whether the home — currently listed at $1.945 million — also comes with a knight in shining armor.

— lindsay cohen, ELLE Decor, "'Game of Thrones' Queen Lena Headey Lists Her IRL Fortress For $1.9 Million," 21 July 2017
Pictured from left are John Maravecek, past grand knight; Tom West, state soccer challenge chairman; Israel Cortez Jr., International Soccer Challenge champion; Israel’s father, Israel Cortez Sr.

— michelle mullins, Naperville Sun, "Naperville People in the News," 5 July 2017
Michael Keaton’s caped crusader and Christian Bale’s are different as night (or knight?) and day.

— david frese, kansascity.com, "‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ does whatever the other ‘Spider-Mans’ can — only better," 5 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'knight.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of knight

Middle English, from Old English cniht man-at-arms, boy, servant; akin to Old High German kneht youth, military follower

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

knight

verb

Definition of knight

transitive verb

:to make a knight of

See knight defined for English-language learners

Examples of knight in a Sentence

He is to be knighted by the Queen for his career as an actor.

Recent Examples of knight from the Web

Tang was knighted in 2008 for his charitable work in both Britain and Hong Kong, the same honor his grandfather, businessman and philanthropist Tang Shiu-kin, also received.

— Bloomberg.com, "Hong Kong Businessman And Socialite David Tang Dies At 63," 30 Aug. 2017
Tang was knighted in 2008 for his charitable work in both Britain and Hong Kong, the same honor his grandfather, businessman and philanthropist Tang Shiu-kin, also received.

— Washington Post, "Hong Kong businessman and socialite David Tang dies," 30 Aug. 2017
Serato has been knighted by the Italian government, received a blessing from Pope Francis, been named a CNN Hero and been given numerous awards and proclamations.

— ben brazil, Daily Pilot, "Chef Serato expands his nonprofit’s food services to Huntington Beach," 23 Aug. 2017
The Baratheon side came out victorious, and King Robert knighted Ser Jorah as a result.

— erica gonzales, Harper's BAZAAR, "All of the reunions and meetings in "Eastwatch," explained.," 15 Aug. 2017
The notoriously private Carters knighted DJ Khaled with an honorable mention and JAY-Z’s glittering enthusiasm over his (then) soon-to-be born twins dazzled.

— bianca alysse, Billboard, "All He Does is Win: DJ Khaled's 10 Best Club Anthems," 7 Aug. 2017
My husband, who is from a lower middle-class background like myself, has been knighted!

— miss manners, star-telegram, "Nothing ladylike about boasting of having a title, Miss Manners says," 23 July 2017
Ryan, 18, a rising freshman at the University of Oregon, created this ceremony to knight new reporters for the school newspaper.

— special to the oregonian, OregonLive.com, "Newspaper Knight reinvents high school publication," 22 July 2017
Sir Sir is most commonly a title given to a man knighted by the British monarch.

— karen mizoguchi, PEOPLE.com, "Is Beyoncé and JAY-Z’s Baby Named After a Famous Poet? Fans React to Names Rumi and Sir," 1 July 2017

First Known Use of knight

13th century

KNIGHT Defined for English Language Learners

knight

play

noun

Definition of knight for English Language Learners

: a soldier in the past who had a high social rank and who fought while riding a horse and usually wearing armor
: a man who is given a special honor and the title of Sir by the king or queen of England
: a chess piece shaped like a horse's head

knight

verb

Definition of knight for English Language Learners

: to give (a man) the rank of a knight

KNIGHT Defined for Kids

knight

play

noun \ ˈnīt \

Definition of knight for Students

1 :a warrior of the Middle Ages who fought on horseback, served a king, held a special military rank, and swore to behave in a noble way

2 :a man honored for merit by a king or queen of England and ranking below a baronet

3 :one of the pieces in the game of chess

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knightly

adjective

knight

verb

Definition of knight for Students

knighted; knighting

:to honor a man for merit by granting him the title of knight

Learn More about knight

See words that rhyme with knight Spanish Central: Translation of knight Nglish: Translation of knight for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of knight for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about knight

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knight

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Origin and Etymology of knight

knight

Definition of knight

Examples of knight in a Sentence

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First Known Use of knight

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KNIGHT Defined for English Language Learners

knight

Definition of knight for English Language Learners

knight

Definition of knight for English Language Learners

KNIGHT Defined for Kids

knight

Definition of knight for Students

knightly

knight

Definition of knight for Students

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