Word.ws English Dictionary

knacker's yard

Syllables: knack·er's yard/ˈnæk.əz ˌjɑːd/US/ˈnæ.kɚz ˌjɑɹd/

knacker's yard noun: the area of a slaughterhouse where carcasses unfit for human consumption or other purposes are rendered down to produce useful materials such as glue.

Noun

knacker's yard (plural knackers' yards)

  1. The area of a slaughterhouse where carcasses unfit for human consumption or other purposes are rendered down to produce useful materials such as glue.
    • CXXV. The Commissioners may license such slaughter-house and knacker's yards^([sic]) as they from time to time think proper for slaughtering cattle within the limits of the special Act. CXXVI. No place shall be used or occupied as a slaughter-house or knacker's yard within the said limits which was...1847 June 21, “[10 & 11 Victoriæ] Cap. XXXIV. An Act for Consolidating in One Act Certain Provisions usually Contained in Acts for Paving, Draining, Cleansing, Lighting, and Improving Towns.”, in A...
    • It was a horrible smell of corrupt flesh and mouldy bones, mingling with the sickly steam of from cauldrons in which the anatomized animals were seething down. None save those who have been so unfortunate as to venture upon the confines of a knacker's yard, can possibly conceive the horrible nausea...1853, George W[illiam] M[acArthur] Reynolds, “Following Up the Clue”, in The Mysteries of the Court of London, volume V (Third Series, volume I), London: Published, for Mr. Reynolds, by John Dicks...
    Synonyms:
    knackery, schindery
  2. (colloquial, figuratively) A (notional) place to send a person or object that is spent beyond all reasonable use.
    • I’ve never met someone so incompetent. He’s only fit for the knacker’s yard.
    • No-one would argue that the system is perfect. But as it nears pensionable age, only deranged free marketeers want to see it packed off to the knacker's yard.2007, Planning: Journal of the Royal Town Planning Institute, London: Planning Publications, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 13, column 1

Synonyms of knacker's yard

Forms of knacker's yard

pluralknackers' yards

Origin of knacker's yard

From knacker (“one who slaughters and (especially) renders worn-out livestock (especially horses) and sells their flesh, bones and hides”) + -'s + yard.

Questions about knacker's yard

What does knacker's yard mean?
Knacker's yard means the area of a slaughterhouse where carcasses unfit for human consumption or other purposes are rendered down to produce useful materials such as glue.
What part of speech is knacker's yard?
Knacker's yard is a noun.
How do you pronounce knacker's yard?
Knacker's yard is pronounced /ˈnæk.əz ˌjɑːd/ (UK).
What is the plural of knacker's yard?
The plural of knacker's yard is knackers' yards.

Words near knacker's yard in the dictionary

  1. Knabstrupper
  2. knack
  3. knack-kneed
  4. knacked
  5. knacker
  6. knacker's yard
  7. knackered
  8. knackeredness
  9. knackeries
  10. knackering
  11. knackers

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: knacker's yard (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: En-uk-knacker's yard.oga.

Cite this entry: “knacker's yard.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/knacker%27s_yard. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.