crank

adj

Etymology: From Dutch or Low German krank, ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *krank, from Proto-Germanic *krangaz, *krankaz (“bent; weak”). Cognate with Scots crank, krank, German krank (“sick”).

1. Hard; difficult.
2. Strange; weird; odd.
3. Bent; twisted; crooked; distorted; out of repair.
4. Sick; unwell.
5. Liable to capsize because of poorly stowed cargo or insufficient ballast.

   “This ship is so crank and walty I fear our grave she will be!”

   “The stowage was clumsily done, and the vessel consequently crank.”

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

   “He who was a little before bedred[…]was now cranke and lustie.”

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

name

1. A surname.
2. A small village in Rainford parish, St Helens borough, Merseyside, England (OS grid ref SJ5099).

noun

Etymology: From Middle English crank, cronk, from a shortening of Old English crancstæf (“weaving tool, crank”, literally “bent or crooked staff”), the first element ultimately related to Etymology 1 above.

1. 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.

   “I grind my coffee by hand with a coffee grinder with a crank handle.”

2. 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.
3. The act of converting power into motion, by turning a crankshaft.

   “Yes, a crank was all it needed to start.”

   “Give it a forceful crank.”

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

   “So many turning cranks these have, so many crooks.”

5. Synonym of methamphetamine.

   “Danny got abscesses from shooting all that bathtub crank.”

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

   “Quips and Cranks, and wanton Wiles,”

7. The penis.

   “It was going to be hard not to blow with a girl like her sucking on his crank.”

verb

Etymology: From Middle English crank, cronk, from a shortening of Old English crancstæf (“weaving tool, crank”, literally “bent or crooked staff”), the first element ultimately related to Etymology 1 above.

1. To turn by means of a crank.

   “Motorists had to crank their engine by hand.”

2. To turn a crank.

   “He's been cranking all day and yet it refuses to crank.”

3. To turn.

   “He's been cranking all day and yet it refuses to crank.”

4. To cause to spin via other means, as though turned by a crank.

   “I turn the key and crank the engine; yet it doesn't turn over”

   “Crank it up!”

5. To act in a cranky manner; to behave unreasonably and irritably, especially through complaining.

   “Quit cranking about your spilt milk!”

6. To be running at a high level of output or effort.

   “By one hour into the shift, the boys were really cranking.”

   “Better computers use variable speed fans so they run at top speed only when the computer is really cranking”

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

   “See how this river comes me cranking in.”