1
: having such force as to strike down or overwhelm
a bewildering assortment of knockdown arguments J. W. Krutch
2
: that can easily be assembled or disassembled
a knockdown table
3
chiefly British : extremely low : reduced
knockdown prices

knockdown

2 of 3

noun

1
: the action of knocking down
2
: something (such as a blow) that strikes down or overwhelms
3
: something (such as a piece of furniture) that can be easily assembled or disassembled
knocked down; knocking down; knocks down

transitive verb

1
: to strike to the ground with or as if with a sharp blow : fell
2
: to dispose of (an item) to a bidder at an auction sale
3
: to take apart : disassemble
4
: to receive as income or salary : earn
positions where they were able to knock down good money Infantry Journal
5
: reduce
knocked the price down
6
basketball, informal : to succeed in making (a jump shot or foul shot)
She scored 10 points on the night with three assists. She also knocked down three out of four free-throw attempts. Niki Herbert
Pierce faked right, drove left, turned and knocked down a fadeaway jumper. Jason Mastrodonato

Examples of knockdown in a Sentence

Adjective Now's your chance to buy these items at knockdown prices! Verb she's knocking down a good salary, but she has to work very hard right after the holidays the stores start to knock down the window displays
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Adjective
The Suns need another knockdown shooter and could use a versatile four. Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 8 Feb. 2023 That competitive mariachi exists is a knockdown effect of this. Los Angeles Times, 26 Jan. 2023
Noun
In the ninth round, Price had Jonas on the canvas, but it was ruled no knockdown by the referee. Sarah Shephard, The Athletic, 8 Mar. 2025 Most believed Roach had won even without the benefit of the knockdown being properly ruled. Brian Mazique, Forbes, 3 Mar. 2025
Verb
Murray returned from a twisted ankle late in the fourth quarter to knock down a game-tying jumper with 5.3 seconds left, but it was sandwiched between Wizards 3s. Bennett Durando, The Denver Post, 16 Mar. 2025 The Blue Devils were able to knock down a pair of free throws, and Lubin missed his three-pointer to send the game to overtime, giving Duke a 74-71 win. Ryan Morik, Fox News, 15 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for knockdown

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1690, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1809, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of knockdown was in the 15th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Knockdown.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/knockdown. Accessed 21 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

knock down

verb
1
: to strike to the ground with or as if with a sharp blow
2
: to sell to the highest bidder at an auction
3
: to take apart
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