To break open something hard with one short, forceful action.
Natural examples
Sie knackte die Walnuss mit einem Nussknacker.
She cracked the walnut with a nutcracker.
Der Frost knackte die dünne Eisschicht auf dem Teich.
Frost cracked the thin ice on the pond.
Der Ast knackte unter dem Gewicht des Schnees.
The branch cracked under the weight of snow.
Usage note
Knacken is regular and usually takes an accusative object: crack a nut. It can also describe the resulting sound.
Mini-lesson: knacken
To break open something hard with one short, forceful action. Knacken is regular and usually takes an accusative object: crack a nut. It can also describe the resulting sound.
Check your learning
Choose one answer.Which definition matches «knacken»?
