Abstract: A safety attachment for a knife has a yoke member adapted to at least partially encircle the body of the knife a short distance behind the blade. A substantially planar guard plate is hingedly attached to the yoke member to freely swing about an axis located at or below the knife body. In a cutting position, the guard plate extends rearwardly from the axis and the blade, skimming the top of the workpiece. Upon contact with a sizable obstruction, the guard plate pivots about the obstruction to a guard position wherein the guard plate forms a solid barrier between the cutting edge of the knife blade and the obstruction, thereby preventing contact between the obstruction and the knife blade.