crank
1Machinery. any of several types of arms or levers for imparting rotary or oscillatory motion to a rotating shaft, one end of the crank being fixed to the shaft and the other end receiving reciprocating motion from a hand, connecting rod, etc.
Informal. an ill-tempered, grouchy person.
an unbalanced person who is overzealous in the advocacy of a private cause.
an eccentric or whimsical notion.
a strikingly clever turn of speech or play on words.
Archaic. a bend; turn.
Slang. the nasal decongestant propylhexedrine, used illicitly for its euphoric effects.
Automotive Slang. a crankshaft.
to bend into or make in the shape of a crank.
to furnish with a crank.
Machinery. to rotate (a shaft) by means of a crank.
to start (an internal-combustion engine) by turning the crankshaft manually or by means of a small motor.
to start the engine of (a motor vehicle) by turning the crankshaft manually.
to turn a crank, as in starting an automobile engine.
Obsolete. to turn and twist; zigzag.
of, relating to, or by an unbalanced or overzealous person: a crank phone call; crank mail.
British Dialect. cranky1 (def. 5).
crank down, to cause to diminish or terminate: the president's efforts to crank down inflation.
crank in / into to incorporate as an integral part: Overhead is cranked into the retail cost.
crank out, to make or produce in a mass-production, effortless, or mechanical way: She's able to crank out one best-selling novel after another.
crank up, Informal.
to get started or ready: The theater season is cranking up with four benefit performances.
to stimulate, activate, or produce: to crank up enthusiasm for a new product.
to increase one's efforts, output, etc.: Industry began to crank up after the new tax incentives became law.
Origin of crank
1Other words from crank
- crankless, adjective
- non·crank·ing, adjective
- un·cranked, adjective
Other definitions for crank (2 of 3)
a crank vessel.
Origin of crank
2Other definitions for crank (3 of 3)
Origin of crank
3Other words from crank
- crankly, adverb
- crankness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use crank in a sentence
Instead of surrendering to your busy schedule, grant yourself ten minutes to crank through this three-move bodyweight circuit from Rafique “Flex” Cabral, an ex-Marine, certified personal trainer, and co-founder of New York City–based Trooper Fitness.
Time-Crunched? Try This Effective 10-Minute Workout | Hayden Carpenter | September 29, 2020 | Outside OnlineIn response to interferons, cells crank up protection measures that aim to curb viral replication.
Defects in early immune responses underlie some severe COVID-19 cases | Erin Garcia de Jesus | September 25, 2020 | Science NewsIn short, the new architecture should make Nvidia’s cards monsters when it comes to cranking out HD graphics at high-frame rates.
Nvidia’s monstrous new graphics cards crank up the power while dropping their prices | Stan Horaczek | September 9, 2020 | Popular-ScienceIt’s also that they’ll particularly boost the amount that’s needed during peak times, when temperatures are really roasting and everyone’s cranking up their AC at the same time.
Air conditioning technology is the great missed opportunity in the fight against climate change | James Temple | September 1, 2020 | MIT Technology ReviewThat’s one explanation for subdued inflation since 2008, even as central banks cranked up the printing presses.
After $20 trillion in pandemic relief spending, there’s still no sign of inflation. What happened? | Bernhard Warner | August 25, 2020 | Fortune
Clint (Eastwood) sets the bar high: he's still cranking out movies and interested.
A slew of others, including most notably Motorola, Research in Motion (RIM), and Samsung, are cranking out their own versions.
And sometimes that means cranking it up to ultra-high decibels.
But the site seems to be cranking out its own articles and now the aggregation is complementary.
A DJ was cranking old disco tunes, everything from the Bee Gees to Chaka Khan.
Outside of a little cranking these once difficult experiences had now become practically painless.
The Boy Grew Older | Heywood BrounThis is useful in starting, as the desired rich mixture is quickly obtained without an undue amount of cranking.
The Gasoline Motor | Harold Whiting SlausonIt did, however, and peace was restored before Zebedee finished attending to the trunks and cranking up Henry.
Vacation with the Tucker Twins | Nell SpeedWhen Ruth hastened to the court the brancardiers had shuffled in with the last of Charlies load and he was cranking up his car.
Ruth Fielding In the Red Cross | Alice B. EmersonIt took three hours of almost constant cranking of the unruly iron monster before the automobile could be made to start again.
The Automobilist Abroad | M. F. (Milburg Francisco) Mansfield
British Dictionary definitions for crank (1 of 2)
/ (kræŋk) /
a device for communicating motion or for converting reciprocating motion into rotary motion or vice versa. It consists of an arm projecting from a shaft, often with a second member attached to it parallel to the shaft
Also called: crank handle, starting handle a handle incorporating a crank, used to start an engine or motor
informal
an eccentric or odd person, esp someone who stubbornly maintains unusual views
US and Canadian a bad-tempered person
(tr) to rotate (a shaft) by means of a crank
(tr) to start (an engine, motor, etc) by means of a crank handle
(tr) to bend, twist, or make into the shape of a crank
(intr) obsolete to twist or wind
Origin of crank
1- See also crank up
British Dictionary definitions for crank (2 of 2)
cranky
/ (kræŋk) /
(of a sailing vessel) easily keeled over by the wind; tender
Origin of crank
2Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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