knockout

knock·out | \ ˈnäk-ˌau̇t

Definition of knockout

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : the act of knocking out : the condition of being knocked out

b(1) : the termination of a boxing match when one boxer has been knocked down and is unable to rise and resume boxing within a specified time

(2) : technical knockout

c : a blow that knocks out an opponent

2 : a sensationally striking, appealing, or attractive person or thing

knockout

adjective

Definition of knockout (Entry 2 of 3)

1 : causing a knockout a knockout blow

2 : sensationally striking, appealing, or attractive a knockout dress

3 : having all or part of a gene eliminated or inactivated by genetic engineering knockout mice predisposed to diabetes mellitus

knock out

verb

knocked out; knocking out; knocks out

Definition of knock out (Entry 3 of 3)

transitive verb

1 : to produce roughly or hastily

2a(1) : to defeat (a boxing opponent) by a knockout

(2) : to make unconscious the drug knocked him out

b : to make inoperative or useless electricity was knocked out by the storm

c : to get rid of : eliminate knocked out illegal gambling

3 : to tire out : exhaust knocked themselves out with work

4 : to cause (an opposing pitcher) to be removed from a baseball game by a batting rally

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Examples of knockout in a Sentence

Noun He won the match by a knockout. He scored a knockout in the fourth round. She's a real knockout in that dress. Adjective The Wimbledon tennis tournament is a knockout competition. a knockout sports car that's the talk of the neighborhood Verb the entire staff knocked itself out getting the project finished on time

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Atletico and Juventus aren't exactly strangers to each other, having met in the knockout stages of the European competition last year, Juve narrowly coming out on top over the two-legged tie. — SI.com, "Champions League: Picking a Combined XI From Teams in Group D," 17 Sep. 2019 In a pool alongside Scotland, Ireland, Russia and Samoa -- and with an army of home fans behind them -- the Brave Blossoms have their best ever chance of progressing to the knockout stages of the World Cup for the first time. — George Ramsay, CNN, "Japan set to host 'special' World Cup as rugby steps into the unknown," 17 Sep. 2019 And Rapinoe has scored every goal for the United States during the knockout rounds: two on Tuesday, against Spain, and two on Friday, against France. — Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, "World Cup 2019: Megan Rapinoe Commands the Stage," 29 June 2019 Four of FC Cincinnati's regular contributors have advanced to the knockout rounds of the CONCACAF Gold Cup. — , Cincinnati Enquirer, Cincinnati.com, "FC Cincinnati notebook: Rookie Logan Gdula back in the fold," 26 June 2019 Liverpool had to go through Napoli in the group stage last season en route to the knockout rounds, requiring a 1-0 win over Carlo Ancelotti's side on the final day of group play just to secure its place in the last 16. — Luis Miguel Echegaray, SI.com, "LIVE: Liverpool Begins Champions League Title Defense vs. Napoli," 17 Sep. 2019 Maybe the knockout round of this World Cup can be a salve as Brown suggests. — Marc Stein, New York Times, "For Gregg Popovich, the FIBA World Cup Is Personal," 10 Sep. 2019 Meanwhile, there are some surprise qualifiers for the knockout round of the World Cup, such as the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Venezuela. — Gary Washburn, BostonGlobe.com, "Celtics coach Brad Stevens will have plenty of choices with new-look roster," 7 Sep. 2019 But wait, there’s more math. Because after playing a 34-game regular season to eliminate just 10 of 24 teams, six more will go out in 90 minutes in the first knockout-round games. — Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, "Soccer! Draw between Galaxy and LAFC left neither team satisfied," 27 Aug. 2019

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

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Statistics for knockout

Last Updated

27 Oct 2019

Time Traveler for knockout

The first known use of knockout was in 1818

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More Definitions for knockout

knockout

noun

English Language Learners Definition of knockout

(Entry 1 of 2)

: an occurrence in which a boxing match ends when a fighter has been knocked down by a punch and is unable to start fighting again before 10 seconds have passed

informal : a very attractive or appealing person or thing

knockout

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of knockout (Entry 2 of 2)

: causing someone to become unconscious

informal : extremely attractive or appealing

British, of a contest or competition : designed so that winning teams or players continue to play and losing teams or players do not

knockout

adjective

knock·out | \ ˈnäk-ˌau̇t

Medical Definition of knockout

: having all or part of a gene eliminated or inactivated by genetic engineering knockout mice predisposed to diabetes mellitus serve as animal models in the study of human diabetes

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