vbl. sb. [f. KNOT v. + -ING1.]
1. The action of tying a knot, or of tying or entangling in a knot.
1758. J. Blake, Plan Mar. Syst., 7. Exercising those who are received into the service, in knotting and splicing, in handing and reefing of sails.
1884. Sir S. St. John, Hayti, v. 196. The peculiar knotting of their curly wool.
1898. P. Manson, Trop. Diseases, xxxvii. 587. The affected hairs are bent and twisted and tend to produce matting and knotting.
2. The knitting of knots for fancy-work, similar to TATTING; concr., fancy work done by knitting threads into knots.
1697. [see 6 below].
1712. Addison, Spect., No. 536, ¶ 2. Knotting is again in fashion.
1750. Mrs. Delany, Life & Corr. (1861), II. 616. I have sent you by Mr. Dubourg, who sailed yesterday, all the knotting and knotting thread I have.
1784. Johnson, in Boswell, 3 June. Next to mere idleness, I think knotting is to be reckoned in the scale of insignificance; though I once attempted to learn knotting.
1801. Monthly Rev., XXXV. 342. The young females of the Cape … are expert at … all kinds of lace, knotting, and tambour work.
1826. Miss Mitford, Village, Ser. II. (1863), 317. The whole fringe of the bed and window curtains being composed of her knotting.
1879. Mrs. Macquoid, Berksh. Lady, 123. Taking her knotting out of a black velvet reticule.
3. The formation of knots or protuberances; the production of buds, etc., budding.
1611. Cotgr., Nouēment de jeunes arbres, the knotting of young trees; their springing, or shooting out from knot to knot.
1620. Brinsley, Virg. Ecl., 119/2. In the new flower [viz. at the first knotting].
1848. B. Webb, Continental Ecclesiol., 116. It is like a finger deformed by the knotting of the knuckles.
4. The process of covering the knots in wood with a special preparation, previously to painting; concr., the preparation used for this.
1823. J. Nicholson, Pract. Build., 587. Knotting; in painting, the process for preventing knots from appearing in the finish.
1852. Nicholson’s Dict. Archit., s.v., Knotting is a composition of strong size, mixed with red lead.
1881. Young, Every Man his own Mechanic, § 1578. All the knots in the wood must be killed with knotting…. Knotting is a preparation of red lead, litharge, boiled oil, and a little turpentine.
b. A preparation used as a cement or covering for metals.
5. The process of removing knots from cloth, pulp, etc.: see quots.
1875. Knight, Dict. Mech., 1240/2. Knotting.… 2. (Cloth-making.) Removing weft knots and others from cloth by means of tweezers.
1880. Sir E. J. Reed, Japan, II. 44. The processes of straining, knotting (the separation of knots, impurities, or of matted fibre which has formed into strings, or is insufficiently ground), making [pulp into paper].
6. attrib. and Comb. (chiefly in sense 2).
1697. in Doran, Ann. Eng. Stage (1864), I. xii. 250–1. A black taffety cap, together with a bottle-screw, a knotting needle, and a ball of sky-colour and white knotting.
1763. Mrs. Harris, in Priv. Lett. Ld. Malmesbury, I. 94. She [Lady Weymouth] and the Duchess of Ancaster sat knotting, with a knotting-bag hanging on their left arm.
1824. Mrs. Sherwood, Lady of Manor, II. x. 139. I then … seated myself at the table, with my knotting-shuttle in my hand.
