kneel
verb
\ ˈnēl
\
\
knelt\ ˈnelt
\
or kneeled;
kneeling
\
or kneeled;
kneeling
Definition of kneel
: to position the body so that one or both knees rest on the floor
The prisoners were ordered to kneel.
: to fall or rest on the knees
She kneeled on the floor next to the child.
Examples of kneel in a Sentence
She was kneeling on the floor beside her child.
He was kneeling in front of the altar and praying.
Recent Examples on the Web
The silent protests were largely condemned by many on the political right, including President Donald Trump - who in September 2017 encouraged teams' owners to fire players who knelt during the anthem. — al, "Man attacked 13-year-old because he was ‘disrespecting the national anthem,’ witness says," 7 Aug. 2019 Kaepernick wrote in a tweet that also included photos of the three men kneeling. — Chuck Schilken, Los Angeles Times, "Colin Kaepernick appears to take a shot at Jay-Z with tweet," 19 Aug. 2019 As John knelt, eyes shut, the priest uttered an oath and slapped him, signaling his purification. — Sean Williams, Harper's magazine, "The Black Axe," 19 Aug. 2019 Moments after maneuvering through the postgame handshake line, the Stars gathered together, knelt near the 40-yard line and stared at the West High scoreboard that provided proof of Soldotna’s near-flawless 49-6 decimation of the host Eagles. — Matt Nevala, Anchorage Daily News, "By beating West Eagles in season opener, Stars realign in Alaska football," 18 Aug. 2019 Sobbing, Zena showed photos of Erion kneeling before IS’s black banner. — The Economist, "Confessions of an Islamic State fighter," 16 Aug. 2019 On Tuesday, Perches posted on Facebook a photo of a bereft Basco kneeling by a candlelight memorial. — Washington Post, "Feeling alone, man invites world to El Paso victim’s funeral," 16 Aug. 2019 Those demonstrations were sparked by Kaepernick kneeling during the national anthem in 2016 in an effort to protest the killings of minorities by police officers. — Tyler Mccarthy, Fox News, "Jay-Z talks NFL partnership, Colin Kaepernick and Super Bowl 2020 halftime performers," 15 Aug. 2019 He and former teammate Eric Reid, who knelt with Kaepernick, settled their collusion grievances cases against the NFL in February. — Wayne Sterling, CNN, "Colin Kaepernick marks 3rd anniversary of his first pre-game protest with a powerful video," 15 Aug. 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'kneel.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for kneel
kneel
verb
English Language Learners Definition of kneel
: to move your body so that one or both of your knees are on the floor : to be in a position in which both of your knees are on the floor
See the full definition for kneel in the English Language Learners Dictionary
kneel
verb
\ ˈnēl
\
\
knelt\ ˈnelt \
or kneeled\ ˈnēld \;
kneeling
Kids Definition of kneel
: to support the body on the knees
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