Why do we say someone is weak in the knees?

I’d never have guessed it. I thought maybe it was from back when women fainted so much, but it’s from the bible.

The expression “weak in the knees” originated from the Bible. It was a Hebrew expression that referred to Old Testament figures who are terrified or not steady in their faith. Saying someone had “weak knees” meant they were cowardly and unfaithful back then.

The reality is…for females when we faint, it’s NOT the ankles that go limp, it’s the knees that buckle just before we go down!!! My first love while I was in high school was killed in a fiery crash. During the funeral, I was fine until I felt the knees begin to buckle & I almost went down. My dad steadied me until I could recover. A few seconds later, I was just fine & I could feel it in my knees once I was past the worst. Don’t know if it’s the same for males or not as I’ve NEVER been a male!!! Since you don’t understand it, I can only assume that it’s not happened to you.

@LadyMarissa So what is the science behind it? Is it that our brains stop working? And yes, I have had the sensation, but I always felt it was more about getting dizzy almost.

I@LadyMarissa s it possible that you had forgotten to breathe? That would make you get unsteady.

It happened to me once at a high school reunion, when a girl I was friends with during high school (she liked me then, but I was oblivious and not terribly interested) appeared in front of me, and for whatever reason, I literally got weak in the knees. I was very surprised to learn it’s literally that.

When you faint (or when I faint) I actually feel like my knees are going to bend making me fall. When I feel that I go to the ground, no matter where I am. Extreme fear or bad news makes me feel faint, and yes, possibly weak in the knees.