knight in shining armour

Meaning

1. 1phraseidiomfigurative

   A person, usually a man, who arrives to rescue someone from trouble in an admirable and romantic way.

   Grammar: A noun phrase, used with an or the: he was her knight in shining armour.

   Patterns

   • a knight in shining armour for someone
   • be someone's knight in shining armour

   When my car broke down, a stranger arrived like a knight in shining armour and fixed it.

   She was waiting for a knight in shining armour to solve her problems.

   The new manager came as a knight in shining armour to the failing company.

Word forms

Common combinations

wait for a knight in shining armour

She did not want to wait for a knight in shining armour.

play the knight in shining armour

He tried to play the knight in shining armour.

appear like a knight in shining armour

The mechanic appeared like a knight in shining armour.

be someone's knight in shining armour

My brother was my knight in shining armour that day.

Synonyms and how they differ

white knight

This often refers to a rescuer in business, such as a friendly buyer saving a firm.

savior

Savior is general and can be serious or religious, while knight in shining armour is romantic and playful.

hero

A hero can be brave in many ways; the knight idiom stresses dramatic rescue.

rescuer

This is plain and lacks the romantic image.

Opposites

Word family

knight noun

a medieval mounted soldier

armour noun

protective metal clothing

chivalry noun

polite and brave behavior

chivalrous adjective

courteous and brave

Commonly confused: knight in shining armour or white knight?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “knight in shining armour”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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