crank 1  (kr ăngk)
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n.1. A device for transmitting rotary motion, consisting of a handle or arm attached at right angles to a shaft. 2. A clever turn of speech; a verbal conceit: quips and cranks. 3. A peculiar or eccentric idea or action. 4. Informal a. A grouchy person. b. An eccentric person, especially one who is unduly zealous. 5. Slang Methamphetamine. v. cranked, crank·ing, cranks v.tr.1. a. To start or operate (an engine, for example) by or as if by turning a handle. b. To move or operate (a window, for example) by or as if by turning a handle. 2. To make into the shape of a crank; bend. 3. To provide with a handle that is used in turning. v.intr.1. To turn a handle. 2. To wind in a zigzagging course. adj. Of, being, or produced by an eccentric person: a crank letter; a crank phone call. Phrasal Verbs: crank out To produce, especially mechanically and rapidly: cranks out memo after memo. crank up1. To cause to start or get started as if by turning a crank: cranked up a massive publicity campaign. 2. To cause to intensify, as in volume or force: cranks up the sound on the stereo.
[Middle English, from Old English cranc- (as in crancstæf, weaving implement).] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
crank 2  (kr ăngk)
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adj. Nautical Liable to capsize; unstable.
[Origin unknown.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices
Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:
Indo-European Roots
Semitic Roots
The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.
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