The knocking that you are describing reminds me of a stuck universal joint. A bent axle usually wears tires out very fast more than making noise.
is this a 4x4 solid front axle.your front axle shaft u-joints may be bad.get under the front axle between the wheel and the end of your axle tube grab the u-joint and see if it has play.this is most common knocking on solid axle trucks
A single knocking noise when braking or turning can be caused by a faulty axle. The cost of replacement is usually around 1,000 dollars.
Worn front axle and/or front end component.
check CV joints, if bad replace shafts and joints assembly
One or both of you're drive axle bearings is dry
My 2000 Grand Prix would have a low-speed knocking noise coming from the drivers side as the CV axle was failing. The loss of lubrication in the CV Boots allows the joint to make a knocking/tapping sound at a low speed. If the knocking is coming from the engine compartment, then it could be an entirely different problem.
The usual symptoms are a knocking or loud clicking noise from the front of the car when cornering. The noise is not normally noticeable when driving straight. Check the CV boot (the rubber cover round the drive shaft nearest to the front wheel) this will very often be the cause of the failure if it is split.
sounds like a bad cv axle
i would get the transmission checked it sounds like your torque converter
it really is a vague discription. do you feel the tick in the gas pedal? does it sound like its coming from near your tires... or your engine? most likely it is a wheel bearing or bushing. if it becomes a knocking noise when you go around corners it is your constant velocity axle i am assuming your vehicle is a front wheel drive.
check rubber bushes on ends of rear shocks or the main axle bushes - these can knock when driving if they are badly worn
I've been told that this is usually the cv boot and that it is easier to buy an axle from an auto parts place and have a mechanic replace the axle.