knock about
/ˌnɑk əˈbaʊt/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: 4.35 in modern English
22
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
2
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
verb
To hit (someone or something) all over repeatedly; hence, to behave violently towards or mistreat (someone or something).
Informal; Transitive verb
Example Sentences
- "It was known that he would knock his wife about when he had been drinking."
- "I never saw quite so wretched an example of what a sea-faring life can do; but to a degree, I know it is the same with them all: they are all knocked about, and exposed to every climate, and every weather, till they are not fit to be seen."
- "[Y]oung Mustafa refused to cook rice; Farraj and Daud knocked him about until he cried; […]"
- "The place also got knocked about during the English Civil War, with "the spire [of its church] having been destroyed by the artillery of the Parliamentary forces"."
- "'Oh, come, sir,' protested Greatorex. 'This account speaks of a few other specimens knocking about. Surely in a year or two's time this one couldn't be positively identified as stolen?'"
- "He [a hare] used to knock about here in Holleia, and they said he was nearly black. A good many were after him and had a shot at him, but they never had any luck, until this rascally Andreas came here."
Etymology
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˌnɑk əˈbaʊt/
- British English: /ˌnɒk əˈbaʊt/