| 释义 |
▪ I. knot, n.1|nɒt|
Forms: 1 cnotta, 3 cnot, 3–5 cnotte, 3–7 knotte, 5–8 knott, 3– knot.
[OE. cnotta = Du. knot, LG. knütte, MG. knotte, MHG. knotze knob, knot, etc.:—OTeut. *knutton-, (whence knit v.); cf. OHG. chnodo, chnoto (MHG. knode, knote, G. knoten):—OTeut. *knóþon-, knoðón-, with variation of consonant due to difference of stress.
ON. had knútr knot, knob, knúta knucklebone (Sw. knut Da. knude knot), which may be connected with the above forms, but the difference in vowel makes difficulties. The relationship (if any) of ON. knǫttr (:—*knattu-z) ball, and L. nōdus (perh. for gnōdus) knot, is also obscure.]
I.
1. a. An intertwining or complication of the parts of one or more ropes, cords, or strips of anything flexible enough, made for the purpose of fastening them together or to another object, or to prevent slipping, and secured by being drawn tight; a tie in a rope, necktie, etc.; also, a tangle accidentally drawn tight. to make, † knit, or tie a knot (in), to knot a piece of string or a handkerchief, esp. as a reminder. Also in allusions to the knot in a halter for hanging.
c1000ælfric Hom. II. 28 He afunde..þa snode mid eallum cnottum swa fæste ᵹewriðen swa heo ær wæs. c1290Beket 1445 in S. Eng. Leg. I. 148 Þe knottes gnowen al is flechs: a-boute bi eche side. 14..Chaucer's Sqr.'s T. 663 (Lansd.) Bot I wil here nowe maake a knotte To þe time it come next to my lotte. c1449Pecock Repr. ii. v. 166 Make a knot on his girdil. 1542–3Act 34 & 35 Hen. VIII, c. 3 The bonde of euerywhiche faggotte to conteine three quarters of a yarde at the leaste, besyde the knotte. 1601Shakes. All's Well iv. iii. 163 This is Mounsieur Parrolles the gallant militarist,..that had the whole theoricke of warre in the knot of his scarfe. 1631R. Bolton Comf. Affl. Consc. (1635) 333 One knot in a thread will stay the Needle's Passage as well as five hundred. 1647Cowley Mistr., The Tree v, Go tye the dismal Knot (why shouldst thou live?). 1838Thirlwall Greece II. xiv. 200 He tied sixty knots in a leathern thong, and bade them unfasten one every day, till the prescribed interval had expired. 1873Act 36 & 37 Vict. c. 71 §39 Such mesh [in a net] shall not be less than one and a half inch from knot to knot.
b. Often with qualifying word, naming different forms of knots, as barber's k., bowline k., diamond k., draw-k., fisher's k., French k., granny's k., loop-k., reef-k., † riding k., running k., slip-k., surgeon's k., wall-k., water-k., weaver's k., etc.; for the more important of these, see the first element.
c1320Sir Beues (MS. A) 3220 On a towaile ȝhe made knotte riding, Aboute his nekke ȝhe hit þrew. 1552Huloet, Knotte whiche runneth to, called a rydynge knot, capulum. 1726G. Roberts 4 Years Voy. 112 And making a running bowling Knot on the End of another Rope, I cast it over. 1769Falconer Dict. Marine (1789), Knot, a..knob formed on the extremity of a rope, by untwisting the ends..and interweaving them..amongst each other. There are several sorts, which differ in..form and size: the principal of these are the diamond-knot, the rose-knot, the wall-knot, or walnut. 1795Hutton Math. Dict. s.v., Fig. 11, a Barber's knot, or a knot for cawls of wigs. 1813J. Thomson Lect. Inflam. 267 We passed,..a crooked needle under the artery, threaded with a double waxed thread, part whereof we passed above the aperture in the vessel, and the other below, which were afterwards tied with a double knot called the surgeon's knot. 1860All Year Round No. 66. 382 ‘Which knot?’ asked Toby. ‘Single or double wall, single or double diamond, Matthew Walker, spritsail-sheet, stopper, or shroud?’ 1881L. R. Hamersly Naval Encycl. 421 They [knots]..are named either from the manner in which they are made, or the use to which they are applied, as stopper knot, diamond knot, double-diamond knot, single and double wall knots, etc. c1885Weldon's Pract. Needlework III. 3/1 Flowers are mostly worked in satin stitch highly raised, embellished with French knots. 1899W. G. P. Townsend Embroidery vi. 90 French Knots.—A very ancient stitch, much used by the Chinese for all kinds of elaborate embroidery.
†c. Astron. The star α Piscium, situated in the ‘tie’ of the lines or ribbons imagined to connect the two fishes in the constellation Pisces. Obs.
1551Recorde Cast. Knowl. (1556) 267 The Fyshes, tyed by the tayles with a common Lyne:..and where those two lines are knitte togyther, there is one starre more, whiche is called the Knotte. 1727–41Chambers Cycl. s.v. Pisces, That [star] next the knot in the north. line... 1st before the knot in the south. line.
2. a. Such a tie used or worn as an ornament or adjunct to a dress; a bow of ribbon; a cockade or epaulette; esp. in obs. phrase a suit of knots.
Often with distinctive word prefixed: as breast, shoulder, sword, top, true-love knot, q.v.
a1400–50Alexander 4917 With cumly knottis & with koyntis & knopis of perle. 1552Huloet, Knotte of a cap⁓bande, or hatbande, or lace. 1668G. Etherege She would if she could iii. i, We will only fancy a suit of Knots or two at this shop. 1708Brit. Apollo No. 75. 4/2 The Officers to wear..a mourning Knot on their left Arm. 1713Gay Guard. No. 149 ⁋18 A lady of genius will give a genteel air to her whole dress by a well-fancied suit of knots. 1891Mrs. Newman Begun in Jest I. 209 Her grey morning gown, with its soft frillings of lace and knots of pale, coral-coloured ribbon.
b. Her. (See quot. 1892.)
1828–40Berry Encycl. Her. 1865Kingsley Herew. Prel., The badge in the ‘Wake Knot’, in which..two monks' girdles are worked into the form of the letter W. 1892Woodward & Burne Heraldry II. 585 Knots of particular form were not infrequently used as badges; e.g. the Stafford knot, the Bourchier knot, the Wake and Ormond knot; in all these the silk is twined having some resemblance to the initial letter of the family name. In the Bowen knot the allusion is double, it is formed of four bows, or loops, and each bears a resemblance to one form of the Greek letter B. Knots were also used to unite the badges of two families which had merged into one; or the badge of an office to a personal one.
3. a. Naut. A piece of knotted string fastened to the log-line, one of a series fixed at such intervals that the number of them that run out while the sand-glass is running indicates the ship's speed in nautical miles per hour; hence, each of the divisions so marked on the log-line, as a measure of the rate of motion of the ship (or of a current, etc.). Also attrib. with prefixed numeral = ‘running (so many) knots’.
1633T. James Voy. 24 It did runne two knots. 1669Sturmy Mariner's Mag. iv. 146 The distance between every one of the Knots must be 50 Foot; as many of these as run out in half a Minute, so many Miles or Minutes the Ship saileth in an Hour. 1760–72tr. Juan & Ulloa's Voy. (ed. 3) I. 9 The distance between the knots on the log-line should contain 1/120 of a mile, supposing the glass to run exactly half a minute. 1840R. H. Dana Bef. Mast xxvi. 87 A light wind..carrying us at the rate of four or five knots. 1860Merc. Marine Mag. VII. 169 A ten-knot breeze was blowing. 1900Daily News 10 Jan. 5/1 A torpedo-boat destroyer..had made a record speed of 35½ knots, which was almost exactly equal to 41 miles an hour.
b. Hence loosely used as if equivalent to ‘nautical mile’, in such phrases as 20 knots an hour.
1748Anson's Voy. i. iii. 24 The ship went ten knots an hour. 1772–84Cook Voy. (1799) V. 1828 The strong tide, though even here it ran five knots an hour. 1833Marryat P. Simple xxxviii, We were going twelve knots an hour, and running away from them as fast as we could.
c. at the rate of knots, very fast, quickly. colloq.
1892R. Wardon Macpherson's Gully vi. 40 When she's [sc. the Teremakau river has] got her back up, travellin' in a hurry, like—tearin' along at the rate o' knots like she is to-day—..she's got to be treated with all doo respeck. 1921‘T. Collins’ Rigby's Romance xxxii. 222, I went for it at the rate of knots, with the fire lathering along behind me roaring like fury. 1932Kipling Limits & Renewals 80 A natty little grey and black self-driven coupé came from Brighton way at the rate of knots. 1941Baker N.Z. Slang vi. 53 To travel at the rate of knots.
4. A definite quantity of thread, yarn, etc., varying with the commodity, being a certain number of coils tied by a knot.
c1540Churchw. Acc. St. Dunstan's, Canterbury (MS.) For a knott of sylke ijd. 1641Best Farm. Bks. (Surtees) 16 A loose kinde of two plettes, which is usually sold for 3 half-pence and sometimes for 2d. a knotte; there should bee in everie knotte 18 fathames. 1688R. Holme Armoury iii. vi. 288/2 A knot is a Hundred Threds round the Reel, at which place Housewives make a Katch, as some call it, or a Knot, or an Hank. 1875Temple & Sheldon Hist. Northfield, Mass. 161 A run of yarn consisted of twenty knots, a knot was composed of forty threads, and a thread was seventy-four inches in length, or once round the reel.
5. More fully porter's knot: ‘A kind of double shoulder-pad, with a loop passing round the forehead, the whole roughly resembling a horse-collar, used by London market-porters for carrying their burdens’ (Cassell's Encycl. Dict.).
(Perh. originally a rope tied or knotted into a loop.)
1719D'Urfey Pills (1872) V. 75 Tom the Porter, Companion of the Pot, Who stands in the Street with his Rope and Knot. c1737in Boswell Johnson an. 1737 Mr Wilcox..eyed his robust frame attentively, and with a significant look, said, ‘You had better buy a porter's knot’. 1840Dickens Barn. Rudge xlix, Preceded by a man who carried the immense petition on a porter's knot through the lobby to the door of the House of Commons. 1866Daily Tel. 12 Jan. 5/5 Fathers of families who should have carried porters' knots, so heavy was their fardel of toys.
6. A design or figure formed of crossing lines; an intricate flourish of the pen. † endless knot, the five-pointed figure consisting of a continuous self-crossing line, otherwise called pentacle, pentagram, or pentangle.
13..Gaw. &. Gr. Knt. 630 Fyue poyntez, & vche lyne vmbe-lappez & loukez in oþer, & ay quere hit is endelez, & englych hit callen Ouer-al, as I here, þe endeles knot. 1638Sir T. Herbert Trav. (ed. 2) 197 In blew, red, and yellow tinctures, commixt with Arabiq knots and letters. a1680Butler Rem. (1759) I. 210 As Scriveners take more Pains to learn the Slight Of making Knots, than all the Hands they write.
7. A flower-bed laid out in a fanciful or intricate design; also, more generally, Any laid-out garden plot; a flower-knot. Now chiefly dial.
1494Fabyan Chron. vii. ccxxxviii. 277 An howse wrought lyke vnto a knot in a garden, called a mase. 1502Acc. in A. Amherst Gardening (1895) 84 For diligence in making knottes in the Duke's garden. Clypping of knottes, and sweeping the said garden. 1577B. Googe Heresbach's Husb. (1586) 66 Basyell..is an hearbe that is used to be set in the middest of knottes,..for the excellent savour that it hath. 1622Peacham Compl. Gentl. xix. (1634) 235 Here are the goodliest walkes in Europe, for the trees themselves are placed in curious knots as we use to set our herbes in gardens. 1667H. More Div. Dial. ii. v. (1713) 97 They do not water the Walks of the Garden, but only the Beds or Knots wherein the Flowers grow. 1737G. Smith Cur. Relat. I. i. 49 The Borders of the Beds were lin'd with Box, and beautifully garnish'd with choice Flowers, as were the Knots, in each of which stood a handsome Pot of a choice foreign Plant. 1758L. Temple Sketches 14 More pleasing and beautiful than that insipid, childish, uncomfortable Bauble called a Flower-knot. 1824S. E. Ferrier Inher. lxviii, I must see if my flower knots are arranged according to rule.
8. A central thickened meeting-point of lines, nerves, etc.; esp. in Phys. Geog., an elevated point or region in which several mountain-chains meet.
1861Herschel Phys. Geog. §144 The knot of Pasco, a great ganglion, as it were, of the system [of the Andes]. 1865Chambers' Encycl. VII. 436/1 The Knot [of Cuzco in Peru] comprises six minor mountain-chains, and has an area thrice larger than that of Switzerland.
fig.18..Stevenson Manse Wks. 1894 Misc. I. 160 He [grandfather] moves in my blood..and sits efficient in the very knot and centre of my being.
9. Geom. A unicursal curve in three-dimensional space, which, on being distorted in any way so as to bring it into a plane without passing one part through another, will always have nodes.
1877Tait in Trans. R. Soc. Edin. XXVIII. 145, I was led to the consideration of the forms of knots by Sir W. Thomson's Theory of Vortex Atoms. Ibid. 164 Thus this 4-fold knot, in each of its forms, can be deformed into its own perversion. In what follows all knots possessing this property will be called Amphicheiral. 1884Kirkman ibid. XXXII. 281 Nothing general seems to have been written on knots of more than seven crossings.
II. Figurative applications of 1.
10. fig.
a. Something intricate, involved, or difficult to trace out or explain; a tangle or difficulty; a knotty point or problem. Gordian knot: see Gordian 1 c. to tie (a person) (up) in(to) knots (or a knot): to confuse or nonplus (someone).
c1000ælfric Hom. II. 386 ᵹet her is oðer cnotta ealswa earfoðe, þæt is, ‘Nan man ne astihð to heofenum, buton se ðe of heofenum astah’. a1225Leg. Kath. 1157 Ich habbe uncnut summe of þeos cnotti cnotten. c1400Rom. Rose 4698 Unto hym that love wole flee, The knotte may unclosed bee. 1638–48G. Daniel Eclog. iii. 185 All the Subtle Knotts, which crabbed Heads Have twist. 1676Temple Lett., to Sir J. Williamson Wks. 1731 II. 397 This Knot is of those that must be cut through, and cannot be untied. 1784Cowper Task ii. 520 Knots worthy of solution, which alone A Deity could solve. 1860Baily's Mag. Aug. 368 Never before..were bowlers or fielders so ‘tied up in a knot’. 1876Freeman Norm. Conq. V. xxvii. 719 The death of John cut the knot. 1876T. Hardy Ethelberta (1890) 129 'Tis one of the greatest knots in service—the smoke question. 1888A. G. Steel in Steel & Lyttelton Cricket iii. 167 The team was beginning to get tied up into a knot. 1957D. Robins Noble One (1960) xx. 191 He is tied up in knots. He's fighting himself as well as me. 1974I. Murdoch Sacred & Profane Love Machine 154, I could tie you into such knots, but I won't bother... You won't tell me the truth even now.
b. The central or main point of something intricate, involved, or difficult; the main point in a problem; the complication in the plot of a tale or drama; that in which the difficulty of anything centres.
c1386Chaucer Sqr.'s T. 393 The knotte why þat euery tale is toold If it be taried til that lust be coold..The sauour passeth euer lenger the moore. c1418Pol. Poems (Rolls) II. 243 He that can be Cristes clerc, And knowe the knottes of his crede. 1573–80Baret Alv. K 122 The knot and principall point of the matter. 1653Urquhart Rabelais i. xiii, By and by shall you..know the whole mysterie and knot of the matter. 1881Gladstone Sp. 7 Apr., The small holdings..the very knot of the difficulty not yet overcome.
11. a. Something that forms or maintains a union of any kind; a tie, bond, link.
1393Langl. P. Pl. C. xviii. 127 [Holy Church is] Charite,..Lyf, and loue, and leaute, in o by-leyue and lawe, And loue a knotte of leaute, and of leel by-leyue. c1460G. Ashby Dicta Philos. 1142 Thre thinges be in a right simpul knot, First goode counseil in hym that is not herde [etc.]. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 285 b, And therfore it is called of Saynt Paule the knot of perfeccyon. 1538Starkey England ii. ii. 178, I remembyr the knot betwyx the body and the soule. 1587Fleming Contn. Holinshed III. 1576/2 Ingratitude..and treason..linked togither with manie knots of other shameful sinnes. 1692Dryden St. Euremont's Ess. 362 Policy had not as yet united Men by the Knots of a reasonable Society. 1701Rowe Amb. Step-moth. i. i, To draw The Knot, which holds our common Interest, closer.
b. spec. The tie or bond of wedlock; the marriage or wedding knot.
a1225Leg. Kath. 1525 Swa wit beoð ifestnet & iteiet in an, & swa þe cnotte is icnut bituhhen unc tweien. c1230Hali Meid. 33 Beo þe cnot icnute anes of wedlac. 1592Shakes. Rom. & Jul. iv. ii. 24 Send for the Countie,..Ile haue this knot knit vp to morrow morning. 1698Fryer Acc. E. India & P. 94 But the Cazy..can loose the Knot when they plead a Divorce. 1828Craven Dial. s.v., ‘To tie a knot wi the tongue, at yan cannot louze wi yan's teeth’, i.e. to get married.
†12. A bond or obligation; a binding condition; a spell that binds. Obs.
c1460Towneley Myst. vii. 107 Shall I now syng you a fytt, With my mynstrelsy; loke ye do it well in wrytt, And theron a knot knytt, ffor it is prophecy. 1534More Treat. on Passion Wks. 1286/1 All these supernaturall giftes he gaue him with the knot of thys condicion, that yf hee brake hys commaundement, then shuld he leese them al. a1627Middleton Witch i. ii, Knit with these charms and retentive knots, Neither the man begets nor woman breeds. 1651Hobbes Leviath. iv. xlvii. 384 This was the first Knot upon their Liberty. 1813Scott Trierm. Introd. viii, Of the dread knot a wizard tied, In punishment of maiden's pride.
III. transf. A hard or firm mass such as is formed by a knot tied in a string, etc.
13. A hard lump in an animal body, either in a softer tissue, or on a smooth surface; a swelling or protuberance in a muscle, nerve, gland, etc.; a knob or enlargement in a bone; a tumour, ganglion, wart, pimple, or the like; the lump that seems to gather in the throat in strong emotion.
a1225Ancr. R. 2 Þe on riwleð þe heorte, þe makeð hire efne & smeðe, wiðute knotte & dolke of woh inwit. 13..Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 1334 Þen brek þay þe bale, þe balez out token Lystily forlancyng & bere of þe knot. c1400Beryn 2513 Strecching forth his fyngirs, in siȝt,..Without[en] knot or knor, or eny signe of goute. c1440Promp. Parv. 280/2 Knotte yn the fleshe, vndyr the skynne, glandula. a1533Ld. Berners Gold. Bk. M. Aurel. (1546) L vj, Thei found his handes hard and ful of hard knottes. 1606Shakes. Tr. & Cr. v. iii. 33 Let grow thy Sinews till their knots be strong. 1688Lond. Gaz. No. 2351/4 A Sorrel Horse,..a dry knot on the near Leg behind. 1718Rowe tr. Lucan Notes 32 The Knots of Love. These are little Excrescences of Flesh upon the Forehead of Foals. 1774Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) III. 62 They [the horns of the ibex] are bent backward, full of knots; and it is generally asserted that there is a knot added every year. 1859Tennyson Elaine 736 The Queen, who sat With lips severely placid, felt the knot Climb in her throat.
14. a. A thickened part or protuberance in the tissue of a plant; an excrescence on a stem, branch, or root; a node on a stem, esp. when of swollen form, as the joints in grasses; the hard mass formed in a trunk at the insertion of a branch or round the place of insertion of an abortive or dead branch, causing a rounded cross-grained piece in a board, which is apt to fall out, and leave a knot-hole. Also, a bud; in (the) knot, in bud, budding. pl., a disease which attacks plum and cherry trees (see quot. 1845).
1398Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xvii. i. (MS. Bodl.) lf. 105 b/1 Euerich tree herbe and gras haþ a rote: and in euerich rote manye maner knottes and stringes. Ibid. lxxiii. lf. 207/2. c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 118 He may not breke a knotte of a straw wiþ hise teeþ. 1523Fitzherb. Husb. §25 Quyche..hath many knottes towarde the roote. Ibid. §130 Apple trees that haue knottes in the bowes. 1601Holland Pliny (1634) II. 165 If any person..gather one of these tender knots or buds [of the pomegranate] with 2 fingers only. 1606Shakes. Tr. & Cr. i. iii. 316 Blunt wedges riue hard knots. a1670Hacket Abp. Williams ii. 88 The Citron Tree..It bore some ripe ones [fruits], and some sour ones, some in the Knot, and some in the Blossom altogether. 1703Moxon Mech. Exerc. 111 In Deal-boards, those Boughs or Branches are Knots. 1787Winter Syst. Husb. 51 Couch and some other weeds vegetate at every joint or knot. 1796C. Marshall Garden. ii. (1813) 21 The flowers of many proceed from a bud or knot. 1845Downing Fruits Amer. 270 The knots is a disease attacking bark and wood..[with] the appearance of large, irregular black lumps, with a hard, cracked, uneven surface, quite dry within. Mod. dial. The may is in knot.
†b. Phr. to seek (search for, look for, find) a knot or knots in a rush or bulrush (Lat. nodum in scirpo quærere), to seek or make difficulties where there are none; also, to seek a knot in a ring. Obs.
1340Ayenb. 253 Þet zekþ þet uel ine þe aye oþer þane knotte ine þe resse. 1563–87Foxe A. & M. (1684) II. 387 To strain at gnats, to stumble at straws, to seek knots in rushes. a1592Greene Jas. IV, iii. ii, They seek a knot in a ring that would wrong my master or his servants in this court. 1625Hart Anat. Ur. i. iii. 36 To enquire after [this], were to search for a knot in a rush. 1712Oldisworth Odes Horace ii. 7/2 The Grammarians therefore do in this place look for a Knot in a Bull-rush. a1734North Exam. iii. vii. §43 (1740) 533 Those, that sought Knots in Bulrushes to obstruct the King's Affairs in Parliament.
15. A knob or embossed ornamentation in carved or hammered work; a stud employed as an ornament or for fastening; a boss; also, the carved foliage on the capital of a column (Parker Gloss. Archit. 1875). friar's knots: see friar 9.
13..Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 577 Greuez, With polaynez piched þer-to, policed ful clene, Aboute his knez knaged wyth knotez of golde. c1394P. Pl. Crede 161 Þe pileres weren..queynteli i-coruen wiþ curiouse knottes. 1412–20Lydg. Chron. Troy ii. xi, Eche caruer and curious ioyner To make knottes w' many a queynt floure. 1534in Peacock Eng. Ch. Furniture (1866) 191 Item a shaft of siluer for the same crosse with a roll gilte & iij knottes gilte of the whiche knottes euery one hath vj roses enamelid with asure. 1664in Bradshaw & Wordsworth Lincoln Stat. (1897) 645 Vehemently suspected to haue secretly purloyned..much of the lead and soulder..and many of the ould window knotts; and to haue sould them to diuerse pewterers. 1683Moxon Mech. Exerc., Printing xx. ⁋3 These Knots are small square pieces of Box-wood. 1812–16J. Smith Panorama Sc. & Art I. 163 A boss or knot at the centre intersections. 1849–50Weale Dict. Terms, Knot or Knob, a boss; a round bunch of leaves or flowers, or other ornament of a similar kind.
16. A hill or eminence of moderate height; esp. a rocky hill or summit. Frequent in proper names of hills in the north-west of England. Cf. knob 2.
13..Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 1431 In a knot, bi a clyffe, at þe kerre syde, Þer as þe rogh rocher vn-rydely watz fallen. 1594Norden Spec. Brit., Essex 11 Sundrie valleis ther are, which of necessitie require hills; but they are but small knottes,..makinge a difference betwene the valley and the higher grounde. 1785Hutton Bran New Wark Prol. 10 Whilst I grovel amongst these knots and barrows. 1828Craven Dial., Knot, a rocky summit, as Bolland knot, Nursaw knot. 1887Pall Mall G. 25 June 6/1 The loyal bonfires were descried by the watchers on Arnside Knott... Some mischievous boys had set light to the gorse and undergrowth at the foot of the knott.
17. A mass formed by the aggregation and cohesion of particles; esp. one that has formed as a hard kernel in the surrounding softer material; a lump, clot, concretion.
Glass-making: in crown glass, = knob n. 1, bull's eye 1 (Dict. Archit. 1863–9); in flint glass, a defect caused by the presence of foreign matter. Geol.: a concretion of foreign matter in some schistose rocks. (Quot. 1625 is doubtful.)
1625B. Jonson Staple of N. ii. iii, I haue lost two stone Of suet..posting hither, You might haue followed me like a watering pot, And seene the knots I made along the street. 1703Moxon Mech. Exerc. 250 It must be extreamly beaten, which will break all the knots of Lime. a1728Woodward Nat. Hist. Fossils (1729) i. I. 186 A Knot of Black-Lead, that, happening to be form'd within the Verge of another, has a Sinus. 1821Clare Vill. Minstr. I. 135 Insects of mysterious birth..Doubtless brought by moisture forth, Hid in knots of spittle white. 1838Encycl. Brit. (ed. 7) XVII. 7 The straining of the stuff [pulp], and thereby keeping out of the paper all the knots and hard substances.
18. A small group, cluster, band or company of persons or things (gathered together in one place, or associated in any way). of a knot, in union or combination, associated together.
a. Of persons.
13..E.E. Allit. P. B. 787 Sant Iohan hem syȝ al in a knot, On þe hyl of Syon. a1548Hall Chron., Edw. IV, 216 All they came together in one knot to the citie. 1601Shakes. Jul. C. iii. i. 117 So often shall the knot of vs be call'd, The Men that gaue their Country liberty. 1639W. Mountagu in Buccleuch MSS. (Hist. MSS. Comm.) I. 278 My Lord Sey and my Lord Brooke, and some of that knott. 1662Pepys Diary 16 Dec., All do conclude Mr. Coventry, and Pett, and me, to be of a knot. 1704Swift Mech. Operat. Spir. Misc. (1711) 287 A Knot of Irish Men and Women. 1849Macaulay Hist. Eng. vii. II. 225 There was scarcely a market town in England without at least a knot of separatists. 1874Green Short Hist. viii. §9. 557 Within the House..a vigorous knot of politicians was resolved to prolong its existence.
b. Of things.
1607–12Bacon Ess., Fortune (Arb.) 376 The Milken Way in the Sky..is a meeting or knot of a number of smalle Starres. 1698Fryer Acc. E. India & P. 6 We were close under St. Iago, another Island of the same Knot. 1825Scott Talism. ii, They had now arrived at the knot of palm⁓trees. a1853Robertson Lect. ii. (1858) 84 You will have..not an institution, but a knot of clubs. 1875Whitney Life Lang. xii. 263 A host of lesser knots of idioms.
IV.
19. attrib. and Comb., as knot-bed, knot-garden (see sense 7); knot-maker, knot-tier, knot-tightener; knot-free, knot-green, knot-haired, knot-like adjs.; knot-catcher (see quot.); knot-gall, a species of oak-gall produced by the cynipid Andricus noduli; knot-head N. Amer., a stupid person (see also quot. 1940); also, a stupid horse; knot-hole, (a) a hole in a board, etc., caused by the falling out of a knot; (b) the hollow formed in the trunk of a tree, by the decay of a branch; (c) a hole formed by the excavation of clay; knot-horn = knot-horn moth; knot-horn moth, a moth of the genus Phycita; knot-ribbon, ribbon used in making bows or knots; knot-stitch, a stitch by which ornamental knots are made; knot-wood, wood that is full of knots; esp. pine; knot-writing, a mnemonic aid consisting of strings in which a number of knots are made.
1665–76Rea Flora (ed. 2) 232 Directions for the..making of a *Knot-bed.
1927T. Woodhouse Artificial Silk 100 The threads or yarn from the cone cheeses are first led up through coils in wires termed *knot catchers.
1648Herrick Hesper., Charm for Stables, The Manes shall be, Of your horses, all *knot-free.
1894C. R. Straton tr. Adler's Alternating Generations 34 The *knot gall is found in June on Q[uercus] pedunculata, Q. sessiliflora, and Q. pubescens. 1908E. T. Connold Brit. Oak Galls 65 The Knot Gall.
1519W. Horman Vulg. 172 The *knot-garden serueth for pleasure: the potte garden for profitte.
a1722Lisle Husb. (1757) 208 (E.D.S.) Red-straw wheat must be gathered *knot-green, that is, whilst the knots in the straw are green.
1659T. Pecke Parnassi Puerp. 125 *Knot-hair'd Sicambrians And Natures frisled æthiopians.
1940Amer. Speech XV. 447/2 *Knot head, low intelligence. 1961Webster, Knothead, a dull-witted blunderer. 1961R. P. Hobson Rancher takes Wife i. 21 Harold called in a loud voice to the horse. ‘Step up there, you old knothead.’ 1962A. Fry Ranch on Cariboo xv. 160 I'd the repertoire of a mule skinner, developed behind a wide variety of knothead horses. 1972J. Aiken Butterfly Picnic ix. 163 Why hadn't he said he was going to, the silly knothead?
1726G. Roberts 4 Years Voy. 284, I found one great Leak, which was a *Knot Hole. 1889Baring-Gould Arminell (1890) I. i. 12 Fanny..detected an eye inspecting her through a knot-hole, laughed, and then turned crimson. 1903Westm. Gaz. 31 Dec. 3/2 The little coons..climbed up to the knot-hole, and scrambled down inside. 1964E. Huxley Back Street New Worlds x. 98 There are craters..called knot-holes, and from them clay has been scooped and loaded into tub-like steel wagons to proceed..to the kilns. 1967M. Chandler Ceramics in Mod. World i. 29 The underlying Lower Oxford clay..is taken from the claypit or ‘knot-hole’ by a mechanical excavator.
1899D. Sharp in Cambr. Nat. Hist. VI. 424 The males frequently have the basal-joint of the antennæ swollen; hence the term ‘*Knot-horns’ applied by collectors to these moths.
1894Spectator 18 Aug. 216/1 The various species of *knot-horn moths (Phycidæ).
1776–96Withering Brit. Plants (ed. 3) II. 347 Leaves with *knot-like joints.
1888Pall Mall G. 26 Jan. 10/1 The trade of ‘*knot-maker’, or ‘tier of cravats’, is not one of the least lucrative callings in Paris just now.
1851Illustr. Catal. Gt. Exhib. 1145 Ribbon for military decorations. *Knot ribbon.
1881C. C. Harrison Woman's Handiwork i. 84 Beginning with the hemstitch of our grandmothers, we may add..lace stitches, herring-bone, buttonhole..darning and *knot stitch. 1964McCall's Sewing ii. 30/1 Knot-stitch, stitch used to secure thread at beginning and end of stitching.
1645Milton Tetrach. Wks. (1851) 163 (Gen. ii. 24) This vers..is the great *knot tier, which hath undon by tying, and by tangling, millions of guiltles consciences.
1896A. J. Butler tr. Ratzel's Hist. Mankind I. 344 In West Australia,..a network of reed serves for a messenger's credentials,—a reminiscence of the once more widely-developed *knot-writing.
▪ II. knot, n.2|nɒt|
Also knott.
[Found from 15th c.; varying from 17th c. with knat, gnat2; origin unknown.
The conjecture of Camden, adopted by Drayton, and commemorated by Linnæus in the specific name Canutus, that the bird was named after King Cnút or Canute, ‘because believed to be a visitant from Denmark’, is without historical or even traditional basis.]
A bird of the Snipe family (Tringa Canutus), also called Red-breasted Sandpiper; it breeds within the Arctic Circle, but is common on the British coasts during the late summer and autumn.
[1422in Rogers Agric. & Prices III. 136/2.] 1452Bill of fare in A. Wood Hist. Univ. Oxf. 26, 3rd Table. Plover, Knottys, Styntis, Quayles. 1572J. Jones Bathes Buckstone 10 Rayle, Curlyew, Cnotwyppe [= Cnot, Wyppe], Wodcocke, Snype, or any other clouen footed fowles. 1586Camden Brit. (1607) 408 Knotts, i. Canuti aves vt opinor, e Dania enim aduolare creduntur. 1622Drayton Poly-olb. xxv. (1748) 368 The Knot, that called was Canutus Bird of old, Of that great King of Danes, his name that still doth hold. 1774Goldsm. Nat. Hist. VI. 28 The long legged plover, the knot and the turnstone, are rather the guests than the natives of this island. 1863C. A. Johns Home Walks 21 Mixed with them in the same flock we repeatedly saw Sanderlings, purple Sandpipers and Knots. 1881Spectator 27 Aug. 1108 In the Nares Arctic Expedition Capt. Fielden discovered the breeding ground of the sanderling and the knot.
▪ III. knot, v.|nɒt|
[f. knot n.1]
1. trans. To tie in a knot; to form a knot or knots in; to do up, fasten, or secure with a knot.
a1547Surrey æneid iv. (1557) Ej, Her quyuer hung behinde her back, her tresse Knotted in gold. 1649G. Daniel Trinarch., Hen. IV, clxiv, Perhaps those Elves Abuse them rather,..And Knot their Hearts in their owne Handkercheife. 1702Addison Dial. Medals ii. Wks. 1721 I. 515 No costly fillets knot her hair behind. 1832Marryat N. Forster xlvii, The seamen were employed in knotting the rigging. 1833Rennie Alph. Angling 65 Begin with three hairs, put them level at top and knot them. 1842Tennyson St. Sim. Styl. 64, I wore The rope..Twisted as tight as I could knot the noose. 1894Hall Caine Manxman v. v. 295 A cardboard box, tied about with a string, which was knotted in a peculiar way.
b. intr. To form a knot or knots; to be or become tied or twisted into a knot.
1611Heywood Gold. Age i. i. 15 Henceforth my vnkem'd lockes shall knot in curles.
2. intr. To make or knit knots for fringes; to do the fancy work called knotting.
a1701Sedley Song, Hears not my Phillis i, Phillis..Sat and knotted all the while. 1713Steele Guard. No. 41 ⁋4 Lady Char—te is taken knotting in Saint James's chapel during divine service. 1824S. E. Ferrier Inher. xv, Miss P. gabbled and knotted. 1869Rogers Hist. Gleanings I. 58 Caroline sat during these recitals, sometimes yawning, sometimes smiling, but always knotting.
b. trans. To make or form by this art.
1750Mrs. Delany Life & Corr. (1861) II. 606 Till I have finished a plain fringe I am knotting. 1781Mrs. Boscawen ibid. Ser. ii. III. 64 You would contrive to knot them some quipos of remembrance!
3. trans. To form protuberances, bosses, or knobs on or in; to make knotty; to emboss; to knit (the brows).
1509Hawes Past. Pleas. xxxvii. (Percy Soc.) 195 The gate, Whiche all of sylver was knotted proprely. 1697R. Pierce Bath Mem. ii. viii. 372 The Gout had knotted all his Joynts, both of Toes and Fingers. 1844Mrs. Browning Drama of Exile Poems 1864 I. 28 This Eve..Knots her fair eyebrows in so hard a knot. 1865Dickens Mut. Fr. ii. xiv, Bradley Headstone knotted his brows.
fig.a1541Wyatt Poems (1557) 46 Make plaine thine hart, that it be not knotted With hope or dreade.
†b. intr. Of plants: To form knots or nodes; to bud; to form a close head, as clover; to begin to develop fruit; to ‘set’ (= knit v. 5 c). Obs.
1611Cotgr., Nouer,..also, to knot (as a tree thats in growing). 1651–3Jer. Taylor Serm. for Year i. vi. 78 You must..let it blossom and knot, and grow and ripen. 1658Evelyn Fr. Gard. (1675) 153 The false flowers which will never knot into fruit, are to be nipped off. 1660Sharrock Vegetables 20 The time of cutting [clover] will be knowne, by observing when it begins to knot.
4. trans. To combine or unite firmly or intricately; to associate intimately; to entangle, complicate.
1611Speed Hist. Gt. Brit. ix. xvi. 657 There were three score thousand of them rebelliously knotted together. 1624Bacon War with Spain Wks. 1879 I. 536/1 The party of the papists in England are become more knotted, both in dependence towards Spain, and amongst themselves. 1670Marvell Corr. Wks. 1872–5 II. 339 The House also thought fit to adjourn itselfe... Thus we are not yet knotted. 1859Hawthorne Marb. Faun xix, The deed knots us together for time and eternity, like the coil of a serpent. 1898G. Meredith Odes Fr. Hist. 29 Thy [armies] clash, they are knotted; and now 'tis the deed of the axe on the log.
†b. intr. To unite or gather together in a knot; to assemble, congregate; to form a compact mass, to concrete. Obs.
1604Shakes. Oth. iv. ii. 62 A Cesterne, for foule Toades To knot and gender in. 1639J. Saltmarsh Policy 289 A little Physicke will disperse a gathering Disease, which if it knot, hath more danger and difficulty. 1662Pepys Diary 24 Aug., A great many young people knotting together, and crying out ‘Porridge!’
5. techn.
a. To cover the knots in (wood) before painting (see knotting vbl. n. 4).
b. To cover (metal, etc.) with knotting (sense 4 b).
c. To remove knots from (cloth, etc.): cf. knotter 2, knotting vbl. n. 5.
▪ IV. knot
obs. form of not a., shorn, round-headed. |