knock over

verb

knocked over; knocking over; knocks over

transitive verb

1

a(1)

: to strike to the ground : fell

(2)

: overwhelm

was knocked over by the news

b

: eliminate

knocked over every difficulty

2

a

: steal

especially : hijack

… knocks over a truckload of merchandise …

—J. B. Martin

b

: rob

knocking over a bank

Synonyms of knock over

• rob
• steal (from)

Examples of knock over in a Sentence

he knocked over six convenience stores before getting caught

knocked me over trying to get out the door

Recent Examples on the Web

There are moments when Lily feels lost and anxious, and another scene where a panicked sheep knocks over furniture, although that is played for laughs. —Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 8 May 2026

Virat Kohli fell for a two-ball duck in Bengaluru’s chase of 203-6 when his off stump was knocked over by Prince Yadav (3-33) in the second over. —ABC News, 7 May 2026

About 2 miles north near Centre Bridge, a pump designed to divert water from the Delaware River into the canal was found knocked over and nonfunctional. —Ross Dimattei, CBS News, 5 May 2026

The gusts progressively grew stronger, knocking over planters and forcing food vendors to close up shop early, until the festival itself was paused and performers were ushered offstage. —Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 26 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1814, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Rhymes for knock over

• carryover
• changeover
• crossover
• cutover
• flashover
• hangover
• holdover
• layover
• leftover
• makeover
• moreover
• passover