knock into a cocked hat
Syllables: knock in·to a cocked hatUK/ˈnɒk ˌɪntuː ə ˌkɒkt ˈhæt//ˈnɑk ˌɪntu ə ˌkɑkt ˈhæt/
knock into a cocked hat verb: to beat up or seriously injure (a person); to badly damage (a thing).
Verb
knock into a cocked hat (third-person singular simple present knocks into a cocked hat, present participle knocking into a cocked hat, simple past and past participle knocked into a cocked hat)
- To beat up or seriously injure (a person); to badly damage (a thing).
- Tho' I'll tell ye what, stranger, I'm none your mealy mouthed fellows, and I'm little jubus [dubious] that you're one of them there [John Quincy] Adams men. And I've just seen the time that I'd knock sich a fellow into a cocked hat as quick as name it. But [Andrew] Jackson is safe enough and he's...1830 November 13, “A rencounter. From the Connersville, Ind. Political Clarion.”, in Frederick-Town Herald, volume XXIX, number 27, Fredericktown, Md.: […] William Ogden Niles, →OCLC, page 4, column 3
- […] I jumped up and told Tom a short horse was soon curried, and I'd knock him into a cocked-hat if he said another word. And that broke up the conversation.1832, [James Kirke Paulding], “A Voyage, a Story, and a Land Adventure”, in Westward Ho! […], volume I, New York, N.Y.: […] J[ames] & J[ohn] Harper, […], →OCLC, page 123
- Synonyms:
- beat into a cocked hat
- To completely demolish, nullify, overthrow, or otherwise defeat (a person; an argument, idea, or proposition; or a thing).
- All the original ideas we had were knocked into a cocked hat by the latest survey.
- "That's a fact," said the Kentuckian, "and knocks all his fine arguments into a cocked hat. Jist a minute ago I tho't slavery wall all right, and now I see it's all wrong, and has no kinder sort o' foundation.["]1853, Vidi [pseudonym], chapter XII, in Mr. Frank, the Underground Mail-agent, Philadelphia, Pa.: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., →OCLC, page 146
- Synonyms:
- beat into a cocked hat
Synonyms of knock into a cocked hat
Forms of knock into a cocked hat
| third-person singular present | knocks into a cocked hat |
|---|---|
| present participle | knocking into a cocked hat |
| past participle | knocked into a cocked hat |
| past | knocked into a cocked hat |
Origin of knock into a cocked hat
A cocked hat is one with the brim turned up to form two or three points (a bicorn or tricorn). The verb may refer: * to someone or something being knocked or hit out of shape like such a hat, or a person having a cocked hat forced on to their head; or * to a person knocking down all but three pins in a game of ninepins, or to the similar game called “cocked hat” in which only three pins are set up in a triangle, although these may simply be allusions to the shape of a tricorn. It has been pointed out that evidence linking these games to the verb is lacking.
Questions about knock into a cocked hat
- What does knock into a cocked hat mean?
- Knock into a cocked hat means to beat up or seriously injure (a person); to badly damage (a thing).
- What part of speech is knock into a cocked hat?
- Knock into a cocked hat is a verb.
- How do you pronounce knock into a cocked hat?
- Knock into a cocked hat is pronounced /ˈnɒk ˌɪntuː ə ˌkɒkt ˈhæt/ (UK).
- What is the past tense of knock into a cocked hat?
- The past tense of knock into a cocked hat is knocked into a cocked hat.
Words near knock into a cocked hat in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: knock into a cocked hat (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-us-knock into a cocked hat.oga.
Cite this entry: “knock into a cocked hat.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/knock_into_a_cocked_hat. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.