Adjacent Words

Knight definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

KNIGHT, n. nite.
1. Originally, a knight was a youth, and young men being employed as servants, hence it came to signify a servant. But among our warlike ancestors, the word was particularly applied to a young man after he was admitted to the privilege of bearing arms. The admission to this privilege was a ceremony of great importance, and was the origin of the institution of knighthood. Hence, in feudal times, a knight was a man admitted to military rank by a certain ceremony. This privilege was conferred on youths of family and fortune, and hence sprung the honorable title of knight, in modern usage. A knight has the title of Sir.
2. A pupil or follower.
3. A champion.
Knight of the post, a knight dubbed at the whipping post or pillory; a hireling witness.
Knight of the shire, in England, one of the representatives of a county in parliament, originally a knight, but now any gentleman having an estate in land of six hundred pounds a year is qualified.
KNIGHT, v.t. nite. To dub or create a knight, which is done by the king who gives the person kneeling a blow with a sword, and says, rise, Sir.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: originally a person of noble birth trained to arms and chivalry; today in Great Britain a person honored by the sovereign for personal merit
2: a chessman shaped to resemble the head of a horse; can move two squares horizontally and one vertically (or vice versa) [syn: knight, horse] v
1: raise (someone) to knighthood; "The Beatles were knighted" [syn: knight, dub]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Old English cniht man-at-arms, boy, servant; akin to Old High German kneht youth, military follower Date: before 12th century 1. a. (1) a mounted man-at-arms serving a feudal superior; especially a man ceremonially inducted into special military rank usually after completing service as page and squire (2) a man honored by a sovereign for merit and in Great Britain ranking below a baronet (3) a person of antiquity equal to a knight in rank b. a man devoted to the service of a lady as her attendant or champion c. a member of an order or society 2. either of two pieces of each color in a set of chessmen having the power to make an L-shaped move of two squares in one row and one square in a perpendicular row over squares that may be occupied II. transitive verb Date: 13th century to make a knight of

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 a man awarded a non-hereditary title (Sir) by a sovereign in recognition of merit or service. 2 hist. a a man, usu. noble, raised esp. by a sovereign to honourable military rank after service as a page and squire. b a military follower or attendant, esp. of a lady as her champion in a war or tournament. 3 a man devoted to the service of a woman, cause, etc. 4 Chess a piece usu. shaped like a horse's head. 5 a Rom.Hist. a member of the class of equites, orig. the cavalry of the Roman army. b Gk Hist. a citizen of the second class in Athens. 6 (in full knight of the shire) hist. a gentleman representing a shire or county in parliament. --v.tr. confer a knighthood on. Phrases and idioms: knight bachelor (pl. knights bachelor) a knight not belonging to a special order. knight commander see COMMANDER. knight errant 1 a medieval knight wandering in search of chivalrous adventures. 2 a man of a chivalrous or quixotic nature. knight-errantry the practice or conduct of a knight errant. Knight Hospitaller (pl. Knights Hospitaller) a member of an order of monks with a military history, founded at Jerusalem c.1050. knight marshal hist. an officer of the royal household with judicial functions. knight of the road colloq. 1 a highwayman. 2 a commercial traveller. 3 a tramp. 4 a lorry driver or taxi driver. knight-service hist. the tenure of land by military service. Knight Templar (pl. Knights Templar) a member of a religious and military order for the protection of pilgrims to the Holy Land, suppressed in 1312. Derivatives: knighthood n. knightlike adj. knightly adj. & adv. poet. knightliness n. Etymology: OE cniht boy, youth, hero f. WG

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Knight Knight, n. [OE. knight, cniht, knight, soldier, As. cniht, cneoht, a boy, youth, attendant, military follower; akin to D. & G. knecht servant; perh. akin to E. kin.] 1. A young servant or follower; a military attendant. [Obs.] 2. (a) In feudal times, a man-at-arms serving on horseback and admitted to a certain military rank with special ceremonies, including an oath to protect the distressed, maintain the right, and live a stainless life. (b) One on whom knighthood, a dignity next below that of baronet, is conferred by the sovereign, entitling him to be addressed as Sir; as, Sir John. [Eng.] Hence: (c) A champion; a partisan; a lover. ``Give this ring to my true knight.'' Shak ``In all your quarrels will I be your knight.'' --Tennyson. Knights, by their oaths, should right poor ladies' harms. --Shak. Note: Formerly, when a knight's name was not known, it was customary to address him as Sir Knight. The rank of a knight is not hereditary. 3. A piece used in the game of chess, usually bearing a horse's head. 4. A playing card bearing the figure of a knight; the knave or jack. [Obs.] Carpet knight. See under Carpet. Knight of industry. See Chevalier d'industrie, under Chevalier. Knight of Malta, Knight of Rhodes, Knight of St. John of Jerusalem. See Hospitaler. Knight of the post, one who gained his living by giving false evidence on trials, or false bail; hence, a sharper in general. --Nares. ``A knight of the post, . . . quoth he, for so I am termed; a fellow that will swear you anything for twelve pence.'' --Nash. Knight of the shire, in England, one of the representatives of a county in Parliament, in distinction from the representatives of cities and boroughs. Knights commanders, Knights grand cross, different classes of the Order of the Bath. See under Bath, and Companion. Knights of labor, a secret organization whose professed purpose is to secure and maintain the rights of workingmen as respects their relations to their employers. [U. S.] Knights of Pythias, a secret order, founded in Washington, d.C., in 1864, for social and charitable purposes. Knights of the Round Table, knights belonging to an order which, according to the legendary accounts, was instituted by the mythical King Arthur. They derived their common title from the table around which they sat on certain solemn days. --Brande & C.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Knight Knight, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Knighted; p. pr. & vb. n. Knighting.] To dub or create (one) a knight; -- done in England by the sovereign only, who taps the kneeling candidate with a sword, saying: Rise, Sir ---. A soldier, by the honor-giving hand Of C?ur-de-Lion knighted in the field. --Shak.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(knights, knighting, knighted) 1. In medieval times, a knight was a man of noble birth, who served his king or lord in battle. N-COUNT 2. If someone is knighted, they are given a knighthood. He was knighted in the Queen's birthday honours list in June 1988. VERB: usu passive, be V-ed 3. A knight is a man who has been knighted. N-COUNT 4. In chess, a knight is a piece which is shaped like a horse's head. N-COUNT 5. If you refer to someone as a knight in shining armour, you mean that they are kind and brave, and likely to rescue you from a difficult situation. Love songs trick us into believing in knights in shining armor. PHRASE: knight inflects

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Cavalier, chevalier. 2. Partisan, champion. 3. Lover, gallant.

Moby Thesaurus

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