definition
A bent piece of an axle or shaft, or an attached arm perpendicular, or nearly so, to the end of a shaft or wheel, used to impart a rotation to a wheel or other mechanical device; also used to change circular into reciprocating motion, or reciprocating into circular motion.
example
I grind my coffee by hand with a coffee grinder with a crank handle.
definition
The act of converting power into motion, by turning a crankshaft.
example
Yes, a crank was all it needed to start.
definition
Any bend, turn, or winding, as of a passage.
definition
An ill-tempered or nasty person.
example
Billy-Bob is a nasty old crank! He chased my cat away.
definition
A twist or turn of the mind; caprice; whim;
definition
A fit of temper or passion.
definition
(dated in US) A person who is considered strange or odd by others. They may behave in unconventional ways.
example
John is a crank because he talks to himself.
synonyms
definition
(1800s) A baseball fan.
definition
An advocate of a pseudoscience movement.
example
That crank next door thinks he’s created cold fusion in his garage.
synonyms
definition
A twist or turn in speech; word play consisting in a change of the form or meaning of a word.
definition
A sick person; an invalid.
definition
A penis.
synonyms