kneecap

American

[nee-kap] / ˈniˌkæp /

noun

the patella.
a protective covering, usually knitted, for the knee.

verb (used with object)

kneecapped, kneecapping

to cripple (a person) by shooting in the knee.

Terrorists were kneecapping prospective jurors.

kneecap British

/ ˈniːˌkæp /

noun

anatomy a nontechnical name for patella
another word for poleyn

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

(esp of certain terrorist groups) to shoot (a person) in the kneecap, esp as an act of retaliation

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

kneecap Scientific

/ nē′kăp′ /

See patella

Other Word Forms

kneecapper noun

Etymology

Origin of kneecap

First recorded in 1650–60; knee + cap ¹

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Now legal attacks from outside threaten to kneecap it entirely.

From Los Angeles Times

Hill suffered torn ligaments and a dislocated kneecap in a game against the New York Jets last year, ending his season.

From Barron's

Lily bounces up and down, landing squarely on my kneecap again.

From Literature

But traditional builders and single-family rental landlords are still grappling with how new restrictions, which need to be codified by Congress, could kneecap their businesses.

From The Wall Street Journal

In 2009, she shattered her kneecap in a snowmobiling accident and required eight surgeries, but she recovered in time to compete at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

From Los Angeles Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023