kneecap

Everyday

1. The kneecap is the small, flat, roundish bone at the front of your knee. tree →
2. (rare, violent) To kneecap someone means to shoot or hurt them in the knee as a cruel punishment. tree →

In the lessons

In science lessons on the skeleton, the kneecap's proper name is the patella; it protects the knee joint. In sport and safety, knee pads protect kneecaps when skating or playing goalkeeper. The violent verb meaning appears only in history or news about gangs and conflicts.

Examples

• The kneecap protects the front of your knee joint. tree →
• The doctor tapped below my kneecap and my leg jumped. tree →
• Wear knee pads to protect your kneecaps. tree →
• The proper name for the kneecap is the patella. tree →
• She dislocated her kneecap playing netball. tree →
• Babies' kneecaps are mostly soft cartilage. tree →

Note

Countable, one word. Plural: kneecaps. The k in knee is silent: NEE-cap. The verb is rare and describes violence.