doorknob
/ˈdɔː.nɒb//ˈdɔɹ.nɑb/
doorknob noun: a circular device attached to a door, the rotation of which permits the unlatching of the door.
Noun
doorknob (plural doorknobs)
- A circular device attached to a door, the rotation of which permits the unlatching of the door.
- A doorknob of whatever roundish shape is effectively a continuum of levers, with the axis of the latching mechanism—known as the spindle—being the fulcrum about which the turning takes place.2012 March, Henry Petroski, “Opening Doors”, in American Scientist, volume 100, number 2, pages 112–3
- A stupid person.
Verb
doorknob (third-person singular simple present doorknobs, present participle doorknobbing, simple past and past participle doorknobbed)
- (especially psychiatry) To suddenly bring up a time-consuming topic when very little time remains to discuss it, often as a tactic to avoid conversation.
doorknob meaning in Tamil, Urdu, Tagalog and Arabic
doorknob in Tamil
- கதவுக் குமிழ், கதவின் கைப்பிடி
doorknob in Urdu
- دروازے کی گھنڈی, دستہ
doorknob in Tagalog
- circular device attached to a door, the rotation of which permits the unlatching of a door
- tumbol
doorknob in Arabic
- circular device attached to a door, the rotation of which permits the unlatching of a door
- مِقْبَض اَلْبَاب miqbaḍ al-bāb
More languagesFewer languages
- doorknob in Thai
- ลูกบิด lûuk-bìt
- doorknob in Vietnamese
- tay nắm cửa, nắm đấm cửa
Examples of doorknob in a sentence
- You might feel a little zap touching a metal doorknob when the air is dry.
- I tried the flashlight, but the battery was as dead as a doorknob.
- Turn the doorknob to open the door.
Forms of doorknob
| Noun | |
|---|---|
| plural | doorknobs |
| alternative form | door knob |
| alternative form | door-knob |
| Verb | |
| third-person singular present | doorknobs |
| present participle | doorknobbing |
| past participle | doorknobbed |
| past | doorknobbed |
Origin of doorknob
From door + knob.
Words formed from doorknob
Phrases with doorknob
Questions about doorknob
- What does doorknob mean?
- Doorknob means a circular device attached to a door, the rotation of which permits the unlatching of the door.
- What is doorknob in Tamil?
- Doorknob in Tamil is கதவுக் குமிழ், கதவின் கைப்பிடி. See Doorknob meaning in Tamil.
- What part of speech is doorknob?
- Doorknob can be a noun or a verb.
- How do you pronounce doorknob?
- Doorknob is pronounced /ˈdɔː.nɒb/ (UK).
- What is the plural of doorknob?
- The plural of doorknob is doorknobs.
Words near doorknob in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: doorknob (page history and authors); doorknob (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); doorknob (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-doorknob.wav, en-us-doorknob.oga.
Cite this entry: “doorknob.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/doorknob. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.