Dictionary
An American Dictionary of the English Language
Revised and enlarged (Goodrich & Porter)
Springfield, Mass. · G. & C. Merriam · 1865
- Entries
- 95,912
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Look up a word as the writers of the time used it.
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.Crămp'-ī'/ron, n. p. 308A piece of metal, usually iron, having the ends turned up, and used for binding things together, as large stones in masonry; a cramp.Crămp'it, n. p. 308A piece of metal at the tip of a sword-sheath; a chape. 2. A cramp-iron.Crămp'o-nee', a. p. 308(Her.) Having a cramp or square piece at the end;— said of a cross so furnished.Cram-pōōns', n. pl. p. 308Hooked pieces of iron, something like double calipers, for raising stones, lumber, and other heavy materials. 2. (Mil.) Iron instruments with sharp points worn on the shoes to assist in gaining or…Crămp'-rĭng, n. p. 308A ring formerly supposed to have virtue in averting or curing cramp, as having been consecrated with certain ceremonies on Good Friday.Crămp'y, a. p. 308Diseased with cramp. 2. Productive of, or abounding in, cramps. “This crampy country.” Howitt.Crān or Crāne, n. p. 308A quantity equal to the contents of a barrel; as, a cran of fish. [Scot.] H. Miller.Crān'age, n. p. 308The liberty of using a crane at a wharf for raising wares from a vessel. 2. The money or price paid for the use of a crane.Crān'bēr-ry, n. p. 308(Bot.) A red, sour berry, much used for making sauce, &c.; the fruit of two species of Oxycoccus. The cranberry of the United States is the O. macrocarpus, that of Europe is O. palustris.Crā́nch, v. t. p. 308See CRAUNCH.Crāne, n. p. 308(Ornith.) A wading bird of the genus Grus, having a long, straight bill, and long legs and neck. 2. [D. & L. Ger. kraan, H. Ger. krahn, Sw. kran, Dan. krane, Gr. γέρανος.] (a.) A machine for raising…Crāne, v. t. p. 308To cause to rise; to raise, as if by a crane; — with up. [Rare.] What instruments are used in craning up a soul sunk below the center to the highest heavens. Bates. An upstart craned up to the height…Crāne'-flȳ, n. p. 308(Entom.) A slender, two-winged insect, of the genus Tipula.Crāne's'-bill, n. p. 308(Bot.) The plant Geranium, of many species;— so named from an appendage of the seed-vessel, which resembles the beak of a crane or stork. 2. A pair of long-beaked pincers used by surgeons.Crāng, n. p. 308See KRENG.Crā'ni-al, a. p. 308Belonging to the cranium. “Cranial characters.” Carpenter.Crā'ni-ŏg'no-my, n. p. 308The doctrine or science which treats of the form and other characteristics of the skull; craniology. Good.