Hypertext Webster Gateway: "Knot"

From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)

Knot \Knot\, n. [OE. knot, knotte, AS. cnotta; akin to D. knot,
OHG. chnodo, chnoto, G. knoten, Icel. kn?tr, Sw. knut, Dan.
knude, and perh. to L. nodus. Cf. {Knout}, {Knit}.]
1.
(a) A fastening together of the pars or ends of one or
more threads, cords, ropes, etc., by any one of
various ways of tying or entangling.
(b) A lump or loop formed in a thread, cord, rope. etc.,
as at the end, by tying or interweaving it upon
itself.
(c) An ornamental tie, as of a ribbon.

Note: The names of knots vary according to the manner of
their making, or the use for which they are intended;
as, dowknot, reef knot, stopper knot, diamond knot,
etc.

2. A bond of union; a connection; a tie. ``With nuptial
knot.'' --Shak.

Ere we knit the knot that can never be loosed. --Bp.
Hall.

3. Something not easily solved; an intricacy; a difficulty; a
perplexity; a problem.

Knots worthy of solution. --Cowper.

A man shall be perplexed with knots, and problems of
business, and contrary affairs. --South.

4. A figure the lines of which are interlaced or intricately
interwoven, as in embroidery, gardening, etc. ``Garden
knots.'' --Bacon.

Flowers worthy of paradise, which, not nice art In
beds and curious knots, but nature boon Poured forth
profuse on hill, and dale, and plain. --Milton.

5. A cluster of persons or things; a collection; a group; a
hand; a clique; as, a knot of politicians. ``Knots of
talk.'' --Tennyson.

His ancient knot of dangerous adversaries. --Shak.

Palms in cluster, knots of Paradise. --Tennyson.

As they sat together in small, separate knots, they
discussed doctrinal and metaphysical points of
belief. --Sir W.
Scott.

6. A portion of a branch of a tree that forms a mass of woody
fiber running at an angle with the grain of the main stock
and making a hard place in the timber. A loose knot is
generally the remains of a dead branch of a tree covered
by later woody growth.

7. A knob, lump, swelling, or protuberance.

With lips serenely placid, felt the knot Climb in
her throat. --Tennyson.

8. A protuberant joint in a plant.

9. The point on which the action of a story depends; the gist
of a matter. [Obs.]

I shoulde to the knotte condescend, And maken of her
walking soon an end. --Chaucer.

10. (Mech.) See {Node}.

11. (Naut.)
(a) A division of the log line, serving to measure the
rate of the vessel's motion. Each knot on the line
bears the same proportion to a mile that thirty
seconds do to an hour. The number of knots which run
off from the reel in half a minute, therefore, shows
the number of miles the vessel sails in an hour.
Hence:
(b) A nautical mile, or 6080.27 feet; as, when a ship
goes eight miles an hour, her speed is said to be
eight knots.

12. A kind of epaulet. See {Shoulder knot}.

13. (Zo["o]l.) A sandpiper ({Tringa canutus}), found in the
northern parts of all the continents, in summer. It is
grayish or ashy above, with the rump and upper tail
coverts white, barred with dusky. The lower parts are
pale brown, with the flanks and under tail coverts white.
When fat it is prized by epicures. Called also {dunne}.

Note: The name is said to be derived from King Canute, this
bird being a favorite article of food with him.

The knot that called was Canutus' bird of old, Of
that great king of Danes his name that still doth
hold, His appetite to please that far and near
was sought. --Drayton.

From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)

Knot \Knot\, v. i.
1. To form knots or joints, as in a cord, a plant, etc.; to
become entangled.

Cut hay when it begins to knot. --Mortimer.

2. To knit knots for fringe or trimming.

3. To copulate; -- said of toads. [R.] --Shak.

From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)

Knot \Knot\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Knotted}; p. pr. & vb. n.
{Knotting}.]
1. To tie in or with, or form into, a knot or knots; to form
a knot on, as a rope; to entangle. ``Knotted curls.''
--Drayton.

As tight as I could knot the noose. --Tennyson.

2. To unite closely; to knit together. --Bacon.

3. To entangle or perplex; to puzzle. [Obs. or R.]

From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)

Node \Node\, n. [L. nodus; perh. akin to E. knot. Cf. {Noose},
{Nowed}.]
1. A knot, a knob; a protuberance; a swelling.

2. Specifically:
(a) (Astron.) One of the two points where the orbit of a
planet, or comet, intersects the ecliptic, or the
orbit of a satellite intersects the plane of the orbit
of its primary.
(b) (Bot.) The joint of a stem, or the part where a leaf
or several leaves are inserted.
(c) (Dialing) A hole in the gnomon of a dial, through
which passes the ray of light which marks the hour of
the day, the parallels of the sun's declination, his
place in the ecliptic, etc.
(d) (Geom.) The point at which a curve crosses itself,
being a double point of the curve. See {Crunode}, and
{Acnode}.
(e) (Mech.) The point at which the lines of a funicular
machine meet from different angular directions; --
called also {knot}. --W. R. Johnson.
(f) (poet.) The knot, intrigue, or plot of a piece.
(g) (Med.) A hard concretion or incrustation which forms
upon bones attacked with rheumatism, gout, or
syphilis; sometimes also, a swelling in the
neighborhood of a joint. --Dunglison.
(h) (Mus) One of the fixed points of a sonorous string,
when it vibrates by aliquot parts, and produces the
harmonic tones; nodal line or point.
(i) (Zo["o]l.) A swelling.

{Ascending node} (Astron.), the node at which the body is
passing northerly, marked with the symbol [astascending],
called the Dragon's head. Called also {northern node}.

{Descending node}, the node at which the body is moving
southwardly, marked thus [astdescending], called Dragon's
tail.

{Line of nodes}, a straight line joining the two nodes of an
orbit.

From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)

knot
n 1: a tight cluster of people or things; "a small knot of women
listened to his sermon"
2: any of various fastenings formed by looping and tying a rope
(or cord) upon itself or to another rope or to another
object
3: a hard cross-grained round piece of wood in a board where a
branch emerged; "the saw buckled when it hit a knot"
4: something twisted and tight and swollen; "their muscles
stood out in knots"; "the old man's fists were two great
gnarls"; "his stomach was in knots" [syn: {gnarl}]
5: a unit of length used in navigation; equivalent to the
distance spanned by one minute of arc in latitude; 1,852
meters [syn: {nautical mile}, {mile}, {mi}, {naut mi}, {international
nautical mile}, {air mile}]
6: soft lump or unevenness in a yarn; either an imperfection or
created by design [syn: {slub}, {burl}]
7: sandpiper that breeds in the arctic and winters in the S
hemisphere [syn: {grayback}, {Calidris canutus}]
v 1: make into knots; make knots out of
2: tie or fasten into a knot
3: tangle or complicate; "a ravelled story" [syn: {ravel}, {tangle}]
[ant: {unravel}, {unravel}]


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