crank

[Crank]

To crank is to turn or rotate something using a handle or lever. The earliest automobiles required drivers to crank the engine before they could climb in and start driving.

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A bent portion of an axle, or shaft, or an arm keyed at right angles to the end of a shaft, by which motion is imparted to or received from it; also used to change circular into reciprocating motion, or reciprocating into circular motion. See Bell crank.

Noun
a hand tool consisting of a rotating shaft with parallel handle

Noun
amphetamine used in the form of a crystalline hydrochloride; used as a stimulant to the nervous system and as an appetite suppressant

Noun
a whimsically eccentric person

Noun
a bad-tempered person

Verb
bend into the shape of a crank

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Verb
fasten with a crank

Verb
rotate with a crank

Verb
start by cranking; "crank up the engine"

Verb
travel along a zigzag path; "The river zigzags through the countryside"

Adjective S.
(used of boats) inclined to heel over easily under sail

n.
A bent portion of an axle, or shaft, or an arm keyed at right angles to the end of a shaft, by which motion is imparted to or received from it; also used to change circular into reciprocating motion, or reciprocating into circular motion. See Bell crank.

n.
Any bend, turn, or winding, as of a passage.

n.
A twist or turn in speech; a conceit consisting in a change of the form or meaning of a word.

n.
A twist or turn of the mind; caprice; whim; crotchet; also, a fit of temper or passion.

n.
A person full of crotchets; one given to fantastic or impracticable projects; one whose judgment is perverted in respect to a particular matter.

n.
A sick person; an invalid.

n.
Sick; infirm.

n.
Liable to careen or be overset, as a ship when she is too narrow, or has not sufficient ballast, or is loaded too high, to carry full sail.

n.
Full of spirit; brisk; lively; sprightly; overconfident; opinionated.

n.
To run with a winding course; to double; to crook; to wind and turn.

Crank

Crank (kr?nk), n. [OE. cranke; akin to E. cringe, cringle, crinkle, and to crank, a., the root meaning, probably, "to turn, twist." See Cringe.] 1. (Mach.) A bent portion of an axle, or shaft, or an arm keyed at right angles to the end of a shaft, by which motion is imparted to or received from it; also used to change circular into reciprocating motion, or reciprocating into circular motion. See Bell crank. 2. Any bend, turn, or winding, as of a passage.

So many turning cranks these have, so many crooks.

3. A twist or turn in speech; a conceit consisting in a change of the form or meaning of a word.

Quips, and cranks, and wanton wiles.

4. A twist or turn of the mind; caprice; whim; crotchet; also, a fit of temper or passion. [Prov. Eng.]

Violent of temper; subject to sudden cranks.

5. A person full of crotchets; one given to fantastic or impracticable projects; one whose judgment is perverted in respect to a particular matter. [Colloq.] 6. A sick person; an invalid. [Obs.]

Thou art a counterfeit crank, a cheater.

Crank axle (Mach.), a driving axle formed with a crank or cranks, as in some kinds of locomotives. -- Crank pin (Mach.), the cylindrical piece which forms the handle, or to which the connecting rod is attached, at the end of a crank, or between the arms of a double crank. -- Crank shaft, a shaft bent into a crank, or having a crank fastened to it, by which it drives or is driven. -- Crank wheel, a wheel acting as a crank, or having a wrist to which a connecting rod is attached.

Crank

Crank (kr?nk), a. [AS. cranc weak; akin to Icel. krangr, D. & G. krank sick, weak (cf.D. krengen to careen). Cf. Crank, n.] 1. Sick; infirm. [Prov. Eng.] 2. (Naut.) Liable to careen or be overest, as a ship when she is too narrow, or has not sufficient ballast, or is loaded too high, to carry full sail. 3. Full of spirit; brisk; lively; sprightly; overconfident; opinionated.

He who was, a little before, bedrid, . . . was now crank and lusty.

If you strong electioners did not think you were among the elect, you would not be so crank about it.

Crank

Crank, v. i. [See Crank, n. ] To run with a winding course; to double; to crook; to wind and turn.

See how this river comes me cranking in.

A bent portion of an axle, or shaft, or an arm keyed at right angles to the end of a shaft, by which motion is imparted to or received from it; also used to change circular into reciprocating motion, or reciprocating into circular motion. See Bell crank.

Sick; infirm.

To run with a winding course; to double; to crook; to wind and turn.

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Usage Examples

When I was 15, my parents left town for a month. They hid the keys to the car, but I found them. That month, I drove my stepdad's Thunderbird Super Coupe into Manhattan every day, and I would crank Cypress Hill as I flew around the city, racing the taxis.

I am an enthusiast, but not a crank in the sense that I have some pet theories as to the proper construction of a flying machine. I wish to avail myself of all that is already known and then, if possible, add my mite to help on the future worker who will attain final success.

Misspelled Form

crank, xcrank, dcrank, fcrank, vcrank, crank, xrank, drank, frank, vrank, rank, cxrank, cdrank, cfrank, cvrank, c rank, cerank, c4rank, c5rank, ctrank, cfrank, ceank, c4ank, c5ank, ctank, cfank, creank, cr4ank, cr5ank, crtank, crfank, crqank, crwank, crsank, crzank, crqnk, crwnk, crsnk, crznk, craqnk, crawnk, crasnk, craznk, crabnk, crahnk, crajnk, cramnk, cra nk, crabk, crahk, crajk, cramk, cra k, cranbk, cranhk, cranjk, cranmk, cran k, cranjk, cranik, cranok, cranlk, cranmk, cranj, crani, crano, cranl, cranm, crankj, cranki, cranko, crankl, crankm.

Other Usage Examples

Well in the end the world can crank itself up to sanctions, as it has with Zimbabwe, another sad case.

A person with a new idea is a crank until the idea succeeds.