knife
part of speech
noun (a knife, knives); verb (knife — rare)
meaning for a pupil
1) A knife is a tool with a sharp blade and a handle, used for cutting. tree →
2) Knives are used at the table for eating: knife and fork. tree →
3) To knife someone means to attack with a knife (rare, serious). tree →
sense in the lessons
In cooking and safety, carry a knife with the point down, cut on a board away from your fingers, never try to catch a falling knife, and use sharp kitchen knives only with an adult. Taking a knife to school is against the law and rules in the UK, US and elsewhere; tell an adult if someone has one. At the table, the knife goes on the right. Phrases: «knife and fork», «butter knife», «bread knife», «on a knife edge» (very uncertain).
examples
- Use a knife and fork to eat your dinner. tree →
- Cut the bread with a bread knife. tree →
- Always cut away from your fingers. tree →
- Carry a knife with the point facing down. tree →
- Don't try to catch a falling knife. tree →
- Put the knives in the drawer. tree →
- The butter knife is not sharp. tree →
- The score was on a knife edge. tree →
- He took his knife and cut it open. tree →
note
The k is silent: «nife». Plural: knives (f → ves). The knife goes to the right of the plate, the fork to the left. Do not confuse with «knight» (also silent k).
In the corpora
- A blue tang has a sharp spine like a little knife near its tail that it can flick out to defend itself.
- He takes his jack-knife home with him.
- Silent letters often show how words were said long ago: the k in «knife» was once spoken.
- "Under the knife" means having surgery.
- "Not the sharpest knife in the drawer" means not very clever; it is a humorous phrase.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «knife» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.