Monday, September 17, 2012

Knocking around

The primary definition of the word knock is "to strike with an audible blow," according to one dictionary. Yet in American slang, the word can mean any number of other things. Consider:

knock - to criticize, as when someone knocks a politician or a new movie

knock around - to loaf or to abuse

knock back - to drink in one gulp

knock someone's block off, knock someone's lights out - to hit very very hard or to beat severely

knock 'em dead - to impress

knocked out - intoxicated

knocked up - pregnant

knockers - breasts

knock for a loop - to unsettle severely

knock it off - stop doing something

knock off - to stop working, to kill, to delete, to arrest, to imitate, to rob, to defeat, to attain, to drink, among other possible meanings

knockout - an attractive person

knock yourself out - to work hard at something

knock someone's socks off or knock them in the aisles - to impress

knock together - to make something quickly

In other words, you can use the word knock to say just about anything. I knocked together this post in about 10 minutes. Don't knock it. It's the best I could do today.

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