doorknob
verbEtymology From door + knob.
1
(especially psychiatry) To suddenly bring up a time-consuming topic when very little time remains to discuss it, often as a tactic to avoid conversation.
doorknob
nounUK /ˈdɔː.nɒb/ · US /ˈdɔɹ.nɑb/
Etymology From door + knob.
1
A circular device attached to a door, the rotation of which permits the unlatching of the door.
- A doorknob of whatever roundish shape is effectively a continuum of levers, with the axis of the latching mechanism—known as the spindle—being the fulcrum about which the turning takes place.2012 March 23, Henry Petroski, “Opening Doors”, in American Scientist, volume 100, number 2, pages 112–3:
2
Derogatory, Informal A stupid person.
- Derived terms
- dead as a doorknob, deaf as a doorknob, doorknobbed, doorknob complaint, doorknoblike, doorknob phenomenon, doorknob question, doorknob statement, dumb as a doorknob
- Related terms
- door handle