knække

Knække is a Danish verb meaning to crack, snap, or break something along a line. It is used for physical actions, such as cracking nuts, ice, or bones, and for solving something, like a puzzle or a code. It can also be used figuratively to describe something yielding under pressure, as in den knækker under pres (it cracks under pressure).

Etymology and cognates: Knække originates in Danish and is cognate with Norwegian knekk/knække and Swedish knäcka, all within the Germanic language family. The form and sense are close to English knack/knack in related roots, though usage and nuance differ across languages.

Grammatical notes: The verb forms are knække (infinitive), knækker (present tense), knækkede (simple past), and knækket (past participle). The imperative is knæk. In adjectives, knækket can appear in compounds or as part of a predicate, e.g., et knækket ben (a broken leg). The word often collocates with concrete objects (nødder, is) and with abstract tasks (koden, en sag).

Usage considerations: In everyday Danish, knække describes both deliberate actions (to crack a code, to crack nuts) and natural or emotional responses (to crack under pressure). It is more precise than termos like bryde or knuse, where bryde emphasizes breaking in general and knuse emphasizes crushing or shattering. The onomatopoeic sense of a cracking sound is commonly conveyed by knæk.