Dictionary
An American Dictionary of the English Language
Revised and enlarged (Goodrich & Porter)
Springfield, Mass. · G. & C. Merriam · 1865
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Look up a word as the writers of the time used it.
Crāb'-grāss, n. p. 307(Bot.) (a.) A grass of the genus Digitaria (D. sanguinalis);—called also finger-grass. (b.) A grass of the genus Eleusine (E. Indica);—called also dog's-tail-grass, wire-grass, &c.Crāb'ite, n. p. 307(Palæon.) A fossil crustacean of the crab kind.Crāb'-louse, n. p. 307A species of louse infesting the human body.Crā'bro, n. p. 307(Entom.) A genus of hymenopterous insects, including the hornet.Crāb's eyes, n. pl. p. 307Concretions formed in the stomach of craw-fish, and used in medicine.Crāb'-tree, n. p. 307The tree that bears crab-apples.Crāb'-yaws, n. p. 307(Med.) A disease in the West Indies; a kind of ulcer on the soles of the feet, with hard, callous lips. Dunglison.Crăck, v. t. p. 307To break without entire separation of the parts; to burst into chinks; to shiver; to fissure; as, to crack glass or ice. One vial full of Edward’s sacred blood . . . Is cracked, and all the precious…Crăck, v. i. p. 307To open in chinks; to become fissured; to be fractured without quite separating into parts; to burst. By misfortune it cracked in the cooling. Boyle. 2. To go to pieces; to be ruined or impaired. The…Crāck, n. p. 307A partial separation of the parts of a substance, with or without a perceptible opening; a chink or fissure; a narrow breach; a crevice; as, a crack in timber, or in a wall, or in glass. 2. A sharp…Crăck, a. p. 307Of superior excellence; having qualities to be boasted of. [Colloq.] “One of our crack speakers in the Commons.” Dickens.Crāck'-brāined, a. p. 307Having an impaired intellect; crazy.Crăck'er, n. p. 307One who, or that which, cracks. 2. A noisy boaster; a swaggering fellow. What cracker is this same that deafs our ears With this abundance of superfluous breath? Shak. 3. A small firework, composed…Crăck'-hĕmp, n. p. 307A wretch deserving or destined to be hung; a gallows-bird;—called also crack-rope.Crăck'le, v. i. p. 307To make slight cracks; to make small, abrupt noises, rapidly or frequently repeated; to decrepitate; as, burning thorns crackle.Crăck'ling, n. p. 307The making of small, abrupt cracks or reports, frequently repeated. As the crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of the fool. Eccl. vii. 6. 2. The rind of roasted pork. 3. (pl.) Food…Crăck'nel, n. p. 307A certain kind of hard, brittle cake or biscuit. Spenser.Crăck'-rōpe, n. p. 307See CRACK-HEMP.Crăck'-skŭll, n. p. 307One whose intellect is impaired; a thoughtless fellow.Crăck's-man, n. p. 307A burglar. [Slang.]Cra-cō'vi-an, n. p. 307(Geog.) A native or naturalized inhabitant of Cracow, in Poland.Cra-cō'vi-an, a. p. 307(Geog.) Pertaining to Cracow.Crā'cōwēs, n. pl. p. 307Long-toed boots or shoes formerly worn in many parts of Europe;—so called from Cracow, in Poland, where they were first worn in the fourteenth century. Fairholt.Crā'dle, n. p. 307A movable bed, so constructed as to rock, for the use of infants; hence, the place in which any thing is nurtured or protected in the earlier period of its existence. No sooner was I crept out of my…Crā'dle, v. t. p. 308To lay in a cradle; to rock in a cradle; to compose or quiet. It cradles their fears to sleep. D. A. Clark. 2. To nurse in infancy. He that hath been cradled in majesty will not leave the throne to…Crā'dle, v. i. p. 308To lie or lodge, as in a cradle. Shak.Crā'dle-hōle, n. p. 308A gulley across a sleigh-track, of a kind often produced by much travel. [U. S.]Crā'dle-scythe, n. p. 308A scythe made broader than an ordinary one, to be used in a cradle for cutting grain.Crā'dling, n. p. 308The act of using a cradle. 2. (Arch.) The timber, ribs, and pieces in arched ceilings, to which the laths are nailed. Gwilt. 3. (Coopering.) Cutting a cask into two pieces lengthwise, in order to…Crāft, n. p. 308Art or skill; dexterity in particular manual employment; hence, the occupation or employment itself; manual art; a trade. A poem is the work of the poet; poesy is his skill or craft of making. B.…Crāft, v. i. p. 308To play tricks; to indulge in deceit. [Obs.] “You have crafted fair.” Shak.Crāft'i-ly, adv. p. 308With craft, cunning, or guile; artfully; cunningly; with more art than honesty.Crāft'i-ness, n. p. 308Dexterity in devising and effecting a purpose; cunning; artifice; stratagem. He taketh the wise in their own craftiness. Job v. 13.Crāfts’man, n. p. 308One skilled in a manual occupation; an artificer; a mechanic.Crāfts'mās-ter, n. p. 308One skilled in his craft or trade; one of superior cunning. “In cunning persuasion his craftsmaster.” Holland.Craft'y, a. p. 308Relating to, or characterized by, skill; dexterous. “Crafty work.” Piers Plowman. 2. Skillful at deceiving others; cunning; wily. “A pair of crafty knaves.” Shak. But while, with anxious care and…Crāg, n. p. 308A steep, rugged rock; a rough, broken rock, or point of a rock. 2. (Geol.) A partially compacted bed of gravel mixed with shells, of the tertiary age. Dana.Crāg, n. p. 308The human neck. They looken big, as bulls that have been bate, And bearen the crag so stiff and so state. Spenser. 2. The neck-piece or rack of mutton.Crāg'ged, a. p. 308Full of crags or broken rocks; rough; rugged; abounding with prominences, points, and inequalities.Crāg'ged-ness, n. p. 308The state of abounding with crags, or broken, pointed rocks.Crāg'gi-ness, n. p. 308The state of being craggy.Crāg'gy, a. p. 308Full of crags; abounding with broken rocks; rugged with projecting points of rocks; as, the craggy side of a mountain; a craggy cliff. From the craggy ledge, the poppy hangs asleep. Tennyson.Crāil, n. p. 308A kind of basket made of osiers. See CREEL.Crāke, n. p. 308A boast. See CRACK. Spenser.Crāke, v. t. p. 308To utter boastfully. [Obs.] Spenser.Crāke, v. i. p. 308To brag; to boast; to crack. [Obs.] See CRACK, v. i. Spenser.Crāke, n. p. 308(Ornith.) A species of Rallus or rail (R. crex), found among grass, corn, broom, or furze; — so called from its singular cry; the corn-crake.Crāke'-bĕr'ry, n. p. 308(Bot.) A shrub and its fruit; a species of Empetrum; the crow-berry. See CROW-BERRY.Crāk'er, n. p. 308One who boasts; a braggart. [Obs.]Crām, n. p. 308(Weaving.) A warp having more than two threads passing through each dent or split of the reed. 2. All miscellaneous matters of information pertaining to the classics and classical antiquities, not…Crām, v. t. p. 308To press or drive, particularly in filling or thrusting one thing into another; to stuff; to crowd; to fill to superfluity; as, to cram any thing into a basket or bag; to cram a room with people.…Crām, v. i. p. 308To eat greedily or beyond satiety; to stuff. Pope. 2. To make preparation for an examination by a hasty review of studies. [Colloq. Eng. and U. S. Universities.]Crăm'bo, n. p. 308A play in which one person gives a word, to which another finds a rhyme. I saw in one corner . . . a cluster of men and women, diverting themselves with a game at crambo. I heard several double…Cra-moi'sȳe or Cra-moi'sy, a. p. 308Crimson. A splendid seignior, magnificent in cramoisy velvet. Motley.Crāmp, n. p. 308That which confines or contracts; a limit; a restriction. A narrow fortune is a cramp to a great mind. L'Estrange. 2. [Sw. krampa, Dan. krampe, D. kram, Ger. krampe, from O. H. Ger. chramp[h]…Crāmp, v. t. p. 308To hold tightly pressed together; to restrain from free action; to confine and contract; to impede; to check. The mind may be as much cramped by too much knowledge as by ignorance. Layard. 2. To…Crāmp, a. p. 308Characterized by difficulty or harshness; knotty; crooked. [Rare.] Care being taken not to add any cramp reasons for this opinion. Coleridge.Crāmp'-bärk, n. p. 308(Med.) A plant having a very acid fruit;— sometimes used in medicine.Crāmp'-bōne, n. p. 308The patella of a sheep;—so called because formerly employed as a charm for the cramp. Halliwell. He could turn cramp-bones into chess-men. Dickens.Crāmp'-fish, n. p. 308(Ichth.) The torpedo, or electric ray, the touch of which affects a person with a slight shock of electricity.