knack

CEFRB2

/næk/

noun · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A natural skill or an easy way of doing something.

  2. 02

    noun

    Extra detail

    A petty contrivance; a toy.

Examples

  • I am not an artist. I never had the knack for it.

  • I still can't get the knack of English pronunciation.

At a glance

Sits at B2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
4
Synonyms
5

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. Something performed, or to be done, requiring aptness and dexterity.

  2. A readiness in performance; aptness at doing something.

verb

Extra meaning

  1. To speak affectedly.

More examples

In context

  • The sophist runs for cover to the darkness of what is not and attaches himself to it by some knack of his;

  • These men had some uncanny knack of knowing when the steel was right, and like many such things, it just could not be put into a textbook on the subject.

  • If they hear the Beads knack upon each other, that's enough.

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

After many years of practice, she developed a blank for fixing old clocks quickly and efficiently.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

Late Middle English, use as "special skill" from 1580. Possibly from 14th century Middle English krak, knack (“a sharp sound or blow”), knakke, knakken, from Middle Low German and of imitative origin, similar to Dutch knak (“snap, crack”). Latter cognate to German knacken (“to crack”). See also crack.