If a digit fits in exactly two cells of a row and exactly two cells of a column, and one cell of each sits in the same box, those two can't both hold the digit. So one of the far ends does, and no cell that sees both far ends can be that digit.
The two strings are a row and a column where the digit has only two places. Where they meet in a box, they tie the kite's knot.
Like the Skyscraper, it follows a single digit, so it's easiest to spot with just that digit's candidates in view.
A 2-String Kite
Where the pattern lives
The pattern
Candidates removed
Solved as a result
The 9 fits in just two cells of row 1 (R1C6 and R1C2) and two cells of column 1 (R3C1 and R9C1). R1C2 and R3C1 share box 1, so they can't both be the 9, which means R1C6 or R9C1 is. So the 9 can be removed from every cell that sees both of them: R9C6. That leaves R9C6 with only one candidate: 4.
Only the 9s are shown, so the pattern stands out.
The same idea through a box (Turbot Crane)
Where the pattern lives
The pattern
Candidates removed
Solved as a result
In box 1, the 1 fits in just two cells, R2C2 and R3C3; in row 7, in just two, R7C3 and R7C7. R3C3 and R7C3 see each other, so they can't both be the 1, which means R2C2 or R7C7 is. So the 1 can be removed from every cell that sees both of them: R2C7. That leaves R2C7 with only one candidate: 9.
Only the 1s are shown, so the pattern stands out.
This position comes from a puzzle generated on this site, after every single has been filled in. Boxes are numbered 1–9 from the top left, row by row; R5C4 means row 5, column 4.
How to spot it
1Pick a digit and look only at its candidates.
2Find a row where the digit has exactly two cells, and a column where it has exactly two cells.
3Check that one cell of the row and one cell of the column are in the same box, without being the same cell. Those two are the knot.
4The other cell of the row and the other cell of the column are the far ends.
5Remove the digit from every cell that sees both far ends.
Why it works
The two knot cells share a box, so at most one of them can hold the digit.
The row needs the digit in one of its two cells, and so does the column. Whichever knot cell isn't the digit, the far end of its string is. So at least one far end holds the digit.
A cell that sees both far ends would clash with whichever one holds it, so it can't be that digit.
Common mistakes
Picking a row whose two cells are both in the knot's box. That is a pointing pair, not a kite.
Using the same cell for both strings: the row and the column must meet the box at two different cells.
Removing the digit from cells that see only one far end.
Questions
Why is it called a kite?
Drawn on the grid, the row and the column look like two strings meeting near a corner, with the far ends as the kite's tips.
Is it related to the Skyscraper?
Yes. Both use two lines where the digit has only two places, plus two cells that can't both hold it. The Skyscraper uses two rows (or two columns), the kite a row and a column.
What comes next?
XY-Wing works with cells instead of a single digit: three cells that can each hold only two numbers.
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