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cramp - 12 dictionary results
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cramp

1  [kramp]
Use cramp in a Sentence
–noun
1. Often, cramps.
a. a sudden, involuntary, spasmodic contraction of a muscle or group of muscles, esp. of the extremities, sometimes with severe pain.
b. a piercing pain in the abdomen.
c. an intermittent, painful contraction of structures of a wall containing involuntary muscle, as in biliary colic or in the uterine contractions of menstruation or of labor.
2. writer's cramp.
–verb (used with object)
3. to affect with or as if with a cramp.
Origin:
1325–75; ME crampe < OF < Gmc; c. MD crampe, OS krampo, OHG krampfo; deriv. of adj. meaning narrow, constrained, bent; cf. OHG krampf, ON krappr; akin to crimp
Do you have leg cramp?
 You may be suffering from DVT. Know the signs & symptoms for prevention
 PreventDVT.org
Leg cramps
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cramp

2  [kramp]
–noun
1. cramp iron.
2. a portable frame or tool with a movable part that can be screwed up to hold things together; clamp.
3. anything that confines or restrains.
4. a cramped state or part.
–verb (used with object)
5. to fasten or hold with a cramp.
6. to confine narrowly; restrict; restrain; hamper.
7. to turn (the front wheels of a motor vehicle) by means of the steering gear; steer.
–adjective
8. cramped 2 .
—Idiom
9. cramp one's style, Informal. to prevent one from showing one's best abilities.
Origin:
1375–1425; late ME crampe < MD: hook. See cramp 1

Related forms:
cramp⋅ing⋅ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To cramp
cramp 1   (krāmp)   
n.  
  1. A sudden, involuntary, spasmodic muscular contraction causing severe pain, often occurring in the leg or shoulder as the result of strain or chill.
  2. A temporary partial paralysis of habitually or excessively used muscles.
  3. cramps Spasmodic contractions of the uterus, such as those occurring during menstruation or labor, usually causing pain in the abdomen that may radiate to the lower back and thighs.
v.   cramped, cramp·ing, cramps

v.   tr.
To affect with or as if with a cramp.
v.   intr.
To suffer from or experience cramps.

[Middle English crampe, from Old French, of Germanic origin.]
cramp 2   (krāmp)   
n.  
  1. A frame with an adjustable part to hold pieces together; a clamp.
  2. A cramp iron.
  3. A compressing or restraining force, influence, or thing.
  4. A confined position or part.
tr.v.   cramped, cramp·ing, cramps
  1. To hold together with a cramp.
  2. To shut in so closely as to restrict the physical freedom of: were cramped in the tiny cubicle.
    1. To steer (the wheels of a vehicle) to make a turn.
    2. To jam (a wheel) by a short turn.
adj.  Cramped.

[Middle English crampe, probably from Middle Dutch, hook, cramp. Adj., probably akin to Icelandic krappr, constrained, tight, and Old High German cramf, squeezed.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Cramp

Cramp\ (kr[a^]mp), n. [OE. crampe, craumpe; akin to D. & Sw. kramp, Dan. krampe, G. krampf (whence F. crampe), Icel. krappr strait, narrow, and to E. crimp, crumple; cf. cram. See Grape.]

1. That which confines or contracts; a restraint; a shackle; a hindrance.

A narrow fortune is a cramp to a great mind. --L'Estrange.

Crippling his pleasures with the cramp of fear. --Cowper.

2. (Masonry) A device, usually of iron bent at the ends, used to hold together blocks of stone, timbers, etc.; a cramp iron.

3. (Carp.) A rectangular frame, with a tightening screw, used for compressing the joints of framework, etc.

4. A piece of wood having a curve corresponding to that of the upper part of the instep, on which the upper leather of a boot is stretched to give it the requisite shape.

5. (Med.) A spasmodic and painful involuntary contraction of a muscle or muscles, as of the leg.

The cramp, divers nights, gripeth him in his legs. --Sir T. More.

Cramp bone, the patella of a sheep; -- formerly used as a charm for the cramp. --Halliwell. "He could turn cramp bones into chess men." --Dickens.

Cramp ring, a ring formerly supposed to have virtue in averting or curing cramp, as having been consecrated by one of the kings of England on Good Friday.

Cramp

Cramp\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Cramped (kr?mt; 215); p. pr. & vb. n. Cramping.]

1. To compress; to restrain from free action; to confine and contract; to hinder.

The mind my be as much cramped by too much knowledge as by ignorance. --Layard.

2. To fasten or hold with, or as with, a cramp.

3. Hence, to bind together; to unite.

The . . . fabric of universal justic is well cramped and bolted together in all its parts. --Burke.

4. To form on a cramp; as, to cramp boot legs.

5. To afflict with cramp.

When the gout cramps my joints. --Ford.

To cramp the wheels of wagon, to turn the front wheels out of line with the hind wheels, so that one of them shall be against the body of the wagon.

Cramp

Cramp\, a. [See Cramp, n.] Knotty; difficult. [R.]

Care being taken not to add any of the cramp reasons for this opinion. --Coleridge.

Cramp

Cramp\, n. (Med.) A paralysis of certain muscles due to excessive use; as, writer's cramp; milker's cramp, etc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : cramp
Spanish: calambre, rampa,
German: der Krampf,
Japanese: 筋肉のけいれん
More Translations »

cramp  (n.)
"muscle contraction," 1374, from O.Fr. crampe, from a Frank. word (cf. O.H.G. krapmhe "cramp, spasm," related to kramph "bent, crooked"). The same P.Gmc. root yielded M.Du. crampe, M.L.G. krampe, one of which gave Eng. cramp "a metal bar bent at both ends" (1503), which yielded a metaphoric sense (first recorded 1719) of "something that confines or hinders." Writer's cramp is first attested 1853.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: 1cramp
Pronunciation: 'kramp
Function: noun
1 : a painful involuntary spasmodic contraction of a muscle cramp inthe leg>
2 : a temporary paralysis of muscles from overuse —see WRITER'S CRAMP
3a : sharp abdominal pain —usually used in plural b : persistent and often intense though dull lower abdominal pain associated with dysmenorrhea —usually usedin plural

Main Entry: 2cramp
Function: transitive verb
: to affect with or as if with a cramp or cramps cramping his limbs> crampintransitive senses
: to suffer from cramps
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source

cramp (krāmp)
n.

  1. A sudden, involuntary, spasmodic muscular contraction causing severe pain, often occurring in the leg or shoulder as the result of strain or chill.
  2. A temporary partial paralysis of habitually or excessively used muscles.
  3. cramps Spasmodic contractions of the uterus, such as those occurring during menstruation or labor, usually causing pain in the abdomen that may radiate to the lower back and thighs.
v. cramped, cramp·ing, cramps
To affect with or experience a cramp or cramps.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
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