A knife has a housing, a blade carrier supported in the housing and adapted to hold a blade, and an actuating element coupled to the blade carrier. A handle can move between a nonactuated position and an actuated position and is coupled to the actuating element such that on movement from the nonactuated position to the actuated position the actuating element displaces the blade carrier from a safety position in which blade mounted on the blade carrier is retracted into a seat of the housing in a first cutting position in which the blade projects out of the housing. A pivot joint connects the actuating element with the blade carrier. A guide supports the blade carrier in a translatory and a rotatable manner on the housing.