1 B1 idiomatic informal
To travel or spend time in a place without a fixed plan.
"After graduating, he knocked around Southeast Asia for a year before settling down."
knock around
B1 informal separable transitive/intransitive
To spend time in a place informally, to socialise casually, or to consider an idea roughly.
In plain English
To move around a place with no real plan, to spend time with friends casually, or to think about something loosely.
What does "knock around" mean?
3 meanings, ordered from most common to least. Color-coded by CEFR level.
2 B1 idiomatic informal
To spend time casually with someone as a friend or companion.
"We used to knock around together every summer when we were teenagers."
3 B2 idiomatic informal
To discuss or consider an idea in an informal, exploratory way.
"We knocked the proposal around for an hour but couldn't reach a conclusion."
separable
Literal vs figurative
Words literally mean
To knock things around without aim.
Actually means
To move around a place with no real plan, to spend time with friends casually, or to think about something loosely.
Usage tip
Very common in North American English. Multiple senses: aimless movement, casual socialising ('knock around with friends'), and discussing ideas informally ('knock an idea around'). Also used like 'knock about' to mean physically mistreating someone.
Words that pair with "knock around"
Natural word combinations native speakers use most often.
idea town friends together for years concept
How to conjugate "knock around"
The five tense forms you'll use most often.
Base
knock around
I/you/we/they
3rd person
knocks around
he/she/it
Past simple
knocked around
yesterday
Past participle
knocked around
have + pp
-ing form
knocking around
continuous
Hear "knock around" in the wild
Listen to native speakers using "knock around" in real YouTube videos — click a clip to watch it on Looplines.
Other ways to say "knock around"
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Keep exploring
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