genuflect
/ˈdʒenjuːflekt/verb
no obj.
1- lower one's body briefly by bending one knee to the ground, typically in worship or as a sign of respect单膝下跪：
she genuflected and crossed herself.
她跪下并在自己身上画十字。
1.1
- with adverbial figurative show deference or servility〈喻〉表示顺从; 卑躬屈膝：
politicians had to genuflect to the far left to advance their careers.
为了发展自己的事业, 政客们得向极左人士屈膝献媚。
派生词
genuflection
（亦作genuflexion）noungenuflector
noun词源
mid 17th cent. （in the sense 'bend (the knee)'）： from ecclesiastical Latin genuflectere, from Latin genu 'knee' + flectere 'to bend'.