Knee-deep
adj
adj ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
Adjective
- 1 Reaching up to the knees. not-comparable
"High above stood the ash-tree, its boughs covered with the toy-like bunches called "locks and keys;" and beyond spread the meadows, knee-deep with the verdant grass."
- 2 Submerged to the knees. not-comparable
"This gave me a hint, and I went knee-deep, and sometimes neck-deep, in the Red Weed. The density of the weed gave me a reassuring sense of hiding."
- 3 Deeply involved (in something) or preoccupied (with something). broadly, figuratively, not-comparable
"By the time Tracey arrived, Kayla was working on her second cup of café mocha and knee-deep in paperwork."
Adjective
- 1 coming only to the ankle or knee wordnet
Adverb
- 1 up to the knees wordnet
Example
More examples"His car was stuck in knee-deep snow."
Etymology
From Middle English kne-depe; equivalent to knee + deep.
Related phrases
More for "knee-deep"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.