knot

1 of 3

noun (1)

ˈnät

: an interlacement of the parts of one or more flexible bodies forming a lump or knob (as for fastening or tying together)

: the lump or knob so formed

: a tight constriction or the sense of constriction

my stomach was all in knots

: something hard to solve : problem

a matter full of legal knots

: a bond of union

especially : the marriage bond

: a protuberant lump or swelling in tissue

a knot in a gland

: the base of a woody branch enclosed in the stem from which it arises

also : its section in lumber

: a cluster of persons or things : group

: an ornamental bow of ribbon : cockade

: a division of the log's line serving to measure a ship's speed

b(1)

: one nautical mile per hour

(2)

: one nautical mile

—not used technically

: a closed curve in three-dimensional space

Illustration of knot

1 Blackwall hitch
2 carrick bend
3 clove hitch
4 cat's-paw
5 figure eight
6 granny knot
7 bowline
8 overhand knot
9 fisherman's bend
10 half hitch
11 square knot
12 slipknot
13 stevedore knot
14 true lover's knot
15 surgeon's knot
16 Turk's head
17 sheet bend
18 timber hitch
19 seizing
20 rolling hitch
21 sheepshank

knot

2 of 3

verb

knotted; knotting

transitive verb

: to tie in or with a knot : form knots in

: to unite closely or intricately : entangle

: tie sense 4b

knotted the score

intransitive verb

: to form knots

knotter noun

knot

3 of 3

noun (2)

plural knots or knot

: either of two sandpipers (Calidris canutus and C. tenuirostris) that breed in the Arctic and winter in temperate or warm parts of the New and Old World

Example Sentences

Verb He knotted his tie so that both ends would be the same length. the extension cords were hopelessly knotted together

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The Selling Sunset season 6 newcomer tied the knot with her husband in April 2017. —

Skyler Caruso, Peoplemag, 15 May 2023 The couple moved to Los Angeles after tying the knot in 1967 and welcomed two children, Nicole and Alexander Du Bois Avant. —

Jasmine Washington, Seventeen, 13 May 2023 Shelton and Stefani tied the knot in 2021, and have been going strong ever since. —

Rania Aniftos, Billboard, 12 May 2023 After one year of dating, the Selling Sunset star and the Australian musician have officially tied the knot. —

Kelly Allen, House Beautiful, 12 May 2023 The Selling Sunset star, 41, and the Australian musician, 28, tied the knot after one year of dating, per People. —

Naydeline Mejia, Women's Health, 12 May 2023 The two tied the knot in a Beverly Hills courthouse in October 2019, with besties Dakota Johnson and Chris Martin as their witnesses. —

Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2023 Van der Sloot ties the knot In a ceremony held inside his prison in Peru, van der Sloot married Leidy Figueroa, who was 24 years old and seven months pregnant at the time. —

Michael Ruiz, Fox News, 11 May 2023 Last month, Richie tied the knot with music executive Elliot Grainge in a lavish wedding in the South of France. —

Quinci Legardye, Harper's BAZAAR, 8 May 2023

Verb

The gown was created from a massive quantity of many different types of deep-black threads; silks, rayons, velvets and patent-leather, all meticulously woven and knotted together over a period of 15 days by the extremely talented French artist Laurentine Périlhou. —

Luke Leitch, Vogue, 24 Mar. 2023 Hopkins hit Damous for a 16-yard gain on the first play of the drive, followed by a 9-yard pass to Shropshire, and McBride finished off the drive with a 5-yard run to knot it up 7-all with 9:19 left in the first frame. —

Evan Dudley, al, 19 Nov. 2022 Ohio State took over on downs on the Utes’ first drive of the fourth quarter at its own 29-yard line, promptly accelerating 71 yards to finally knot the score at 38. —

Gordon Monson, The Salt Lake Tribune, 1 Jan. 2022 The Roadrunners took advantage on the final play of the third quarter, as Harris hit Watson down the middle for a 24-yard touchdown to knot the score at 17. —

Greg Luca, San Antonio Express-News, 13 Nov. 2021 Dylan Carlson led off the bottom of the frame with a homer into the St. Louis bullpen in right-center, then after a pair of bloop singles Wainwright laid down a picture-perfect sacrifice squeeze bunt to score Harrison Bader and knot the score at 2-2. —

Todd Rosiak, USA TODAY, 29 Sep. 2021 Will the Bucks take further control of the series and build on their 2-1 lead, or will Atlanta scrap back and knot things at 2-2 heading back to Milwaukee for Game 5? —

Jr Radcliffe, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 29 June 2021 Denver’s Ethan Walker answered with 6:39 left in the game to knot the score at 9-9. —

baltimoresun.com, 8 May 2021 The rookie Okoro answers with an inside basket over Bridges to knot the score with 24.9 seconds left. —

Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 4 May 2021 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'knot.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English, from Old English cnotta; akin to Old High German knoto knot

Noun (2)

Middle English knott

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1547, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of knot was before the 12th century

See more words from the same century

Cite this Entry

Style

“Knot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/knot. Accessed 28 May. 2023.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

knot

1 of 2 noun

ˈnät

: an interlacing (as of string or ribbon) that forms a lump or knob

: something hard to solve : problem

: a bond of union

especially : the marriage bond

: a lump or swelling in bodily tissue

: the base of a woody branch enclosed in the stem from which it arises

also : a section of a knot in lumber

: a cluster of persons or things

: one nautical mile per hour

knot

2 of 2 verb

knotted; knotting

: to tie in or with a knot

: to unite closely

Medical Definition

knot

noun

ˈnät

: an interlacing of the parts of one or more flexible bodies (as threads or sutures) in a lump to prevent their spontaneous separation see surgeon's knot

: a usually firm or hard lump, swelling, or protuberance (as in a muscle or on the surface of a bone) or process

a knot in a gland

a bone with two or three knots

knot verb

knotted; knotting