knien
/ˈkniː.ən/
To kneel in German is knien.
knien means to stoop down and rest on the knee. You can also use the expression Sich hinknien to express the act of kneeling.
Meaning: to stoop down and rest on the knee (verb)
How does it change in a sentence?
knien is a weak verb. This means its past tense and past participle are formed using -te and ge- -t, resulting in kniete and gekniet.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /ˈkniː.ən/. It has two syllables, with the stress on the first syllable.
Did you know?
- The term Kniescheibe, meaning 'kneecap', literally translates to 'knee disk' or 'knee slice'.
- In German, the phrase auf Knien sein can describe not just a physical position but a state of desperation or pleading.
- In a legal or historical context, auf die Knie zwingen means to force someone to submit or surrender, not just to physically kneel.
Examples in context
- Du musst zu meinen Füßen knien, meine Hand küssen und schwören, dass ich ein Engel sei.You must kneel at my feet, kiss my hand and swear that I am an angel.This sentence is useful for seeing how to use knien in a command or requirement.Tatoeba #3080162 by faehrmann, translation #1638592 by Spamster
- Bitte knielen Sie hier nieder.Please kneel down here.
- Knie dich hin und bete.Kneel down and pray.
- Bitte knien Sie sich nieder.Please kneel down.
- Die Königin kniete sich vor dem Papst nieder.The queen knelt down before the Pope.
- Die Kinder knien vor dem Altar.The children kneel before the altar.
- Er musste auf dem Boden knien.He had to kneel on the floor.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “kneel” translations and entries knien, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
