Door knockers used to announce visitors, or people who knock on doors. In slang, a vulgar term for breasts.
From Middle English 'knokken' meaning 'to strike' plus the agent suffix '-er'. Originally referred to people who knock or the metal devices on doors, with the slang meaning emerging in 20th century colloquial usage.
Before doorbells, elaborate door knockers were status symbols - the heavier and more ornate, the more important the household. The word's dual meaning shows how language can split: one path staying respectable (door hardware) while another becomes crude slang.
This word has acquired slang usage as a euphemism for female breasts, reducing women to body parts. The gendered slur emerged in colloquial English during the mid-20th century.
Use only in technical contexts (e.g., door knockers, critics). Avoid without explicit structural purpose.
["critics","objectors","detractors","door hardware"]
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