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Crack

//kɹæk// adj, name, noun, verb, slang

Definitions

Adjective

1
Highly trained and competent. not-comparable
"Even a crack team of investigators would have trouble solving this case."
2
Excellent, first-rate, superior, top-notch. not-comparable
"She's a crack shot with that rifle."

Adjective

1
of the highest quality wordnet

Proper Noun

1
A surname

Noun

1
A thin and usually jagged space opened in a previously solid material. countable, uncountable
"A large crack had formed in the roadway."
2
One who excels; the best, especially a winning racehorse. obsolete
"Stanton had at one time a reputation for inaccessibility, but that has long since become a thing of the past, […] So that the gallops of the cracks' can, in most cases, be regularly watched and their daily doings truthfully chronicled."
3
the act of cracking something wordnet
4
A narrow opening. countable, uncountable
"We managed to squeeze through a crack in the rock wall."
5
a usually brief attempt wordnet

Show 32 more definitions

6
A sharply humorous comment; a wisecrack. countable, uncountable
"I didn't appreciate that crack about my hairstyle."
7
a purified and potent form of cocaine that is smoked rather than snorted; highly addictive wordnet
8
Crack cocaine, a potent, relatively cheap, addictive variety of cocaine; often a rock, usually smoked through a crack-pipe. countable, slang, uncountable
"crack head"
9
a narrow opening wordnet
10
Crack cocaine, a potent, relatively cheap, addictive variety of cocaine; often a rock, usually smoked through a crack-pipe.; Something good-tasting or habit-forming. countable, figuratively, humorous, slang, uncountable
"kitty crack"
11
a blemish resulting from a break without complete separation of the parts wordnet
12
The sharp sound made when solid material breaks. countable, onomatopoeic, uncountable
"The crack of the falling branch could be heard for miles."
13
witty remark wordnet
14
Any sharp sound. countable, onomatopoeic, uncountable
"The crack of the bat hitting the ball."
15
a sudden sharp noise wordnet
16
A sharp, resounding blow. countable, uncountable
"Mrs. Perkins, who has not been for some weeks on speaking terms with Mrs. Piper in consequence for an unpleasantness originating in young Perkins' having "fetched" young Piper "a crack," renews her friendly intercourse on this auspicious occasion."
17
a long narrow cleft wordnet
18
An attempt at something. countable, informal, uncountable
"I'd like to take a crack at that game."
19
a long narrow depression in a surface wordnet
20
The vagina. countable, slang, uncountable, vulgar
"I rattled off more silly nonsense, all the while clutching her firmly, pushing my fingers into her gluey crack."
21
a chance to do something wordnet
22
The space between the buttocks. countable, informal, uncountable
"Pull up your pants! Your crack is showing."
23
Conviviality; fun; good conversation, chat, gossip, or humorous storytelling; good company. Ireland, Northern-England, Scotland, countable, uncountable
"The party was great crack."
24
A chat. Cumbria, Northern-UK, countable, uncountable
"And when he come down in the evenings, he’d drop in every night to have a crack wi’ Old Bob."
25
Business; events; news. Ireland, Northern-England, Scotland, countable, uncountable
"What's the crack?"
26
A program or procedure designed to circumvent restrictions or usage limits on software. countable, uncountable
"Has anyone got a crack for DocumentWriter 3.0?"
27
An expanding circle of white water surrounding the site of a large explosion at shallow depth, marking the progress of the shock wave through the air above the water. US, countable, dated, uncountable
28
Extremely silly, absurd or off-the-wall ideas or prose. Internet, countable, uncountable
29
The tone of voice when changed at puberty. countable, uncountable
"And let vs (Polidore) though now our voyces / Haue got the manniſh cracke, ſing him to'th'ground"
30
A mental flaw; a touch of craziness; partial insanity. archaic, countable, uncountable
"He has a crack."
31
A crazy or crack-brained person. archaic, countable, uncountable
"On the London Cries […] I have lately received a letter from some very odd fellow upon this subject […] ‘Sir, […], but I cannot get the parliament to listen to me ; who look upon me, forsooth, as a crack and a projector […] I am, SIR, &c. / RALPH CROTCHET’"
32
A boast; boasting. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"Slaunderous reproches,and fowle infamies, / Leaſings,backbytings,and vaineglorious crakes"
33
Breach of chastity. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"But thinke her bond of Chaſtity quite crack'd, I hauing 'tane the forfeyt."
34
A boy, generally a pert, lively boy. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"The ſame Sir Iohn, the very ſame: I ſaw him breake Scogaan's Head at the Court-Gate, when hee was a Crack, not thus high: […]"
35
A brief time; an instant; a jiffy. UK, countable, dated, slang, uncountable
"I'll be with you in a crack."
36
The act of hitting on someone. countable, dated, uncountable
"The eyes of my sisters who fear my crack^* [footnote] Before the popularization of the term "crack" as a drug, its common usage in the Black community referred to men publicly cruising and approaching women."
37
Dry firewood. countable, obsolete, uncountable

Verb

1
To form cracks. intransitive
"It's been so dry, the ground is starting to crack."
2
break into simpler molecules by means of heat wordnet
3
To break apart under force, stress, or pressure. intransitive
"When I tried to stand on the chair, it cracked."
4
reduce (petroleum) to a simpler compound by cracking wordnet
5
To become debilitated by psychological pressure. intransitive
"Anyone would crack after being hounded like that."

Show 33 more definitions

6
become fractured; break or crack on the surface only wordnet
7
To break down or yield, especially under interrogation or torture. intransitive
"When we showed him the pictures of the murder scene, he cracked."
8
cause to become cracked wordnet
9
To make a cracking sound. intransitive
"The bat cracked with authority and the ball went for six."
10
break suddenly and abruptly, as under tension wordnet
11
To change rapidly in register. intransitive
"His voice cracked with emotion."
12
break partially but keep its integrity wordnet
13
To alternate between high and low register in the process of eventually lowering. intransitive
"His voice finally cracked when he was fourteen."
14
pass through (a barrier) wordnet
15
To make a sharply humorous comment. intransitive
""I would too, with a face like that," she cracked."
16
tell spontaneously wordnet
17
To realize that one is transgender. intransitive
"She cracked at age 22 and came out to her friends and family over the next few months."
18
hit forcefully; deal a hard blow, making a cracking noise wordnet
19
To make a crack or cracks in. transitive
"The ball cracked the window."
20
suffer a nervous breakdown wordnet
21
To break open or crush to small pieces by impact or stress. transitive
"You'll need a hammer to crack a black walnut."
22
make a sharp sound wordnet
23
To strike forcefully. transitive
"She cracked him over the head with her handbag."
24
make a very sharp explosive sound wordnet
25
To open slightly. transitive
"Could you please crack the window?"
26
gain unauthorized access computers with malicious intentions wordnet
27
To cause to yield under interrogation or other pressure. figuratively, transitive
"They managed to crack him on the third day."
28
To solve a difficult problem. figuratively, transitive
"I've finally cracked it, and of course the answer is obvious in hindsight."
29
To overcome a security system or component. transitive
"It took a minute to crack the lock, three minutes to crack the security system, and about twenty minutes to crack the safe."
30
To cause to make a sharp sound. transitive
"to crack a whip"
31
To tell (a joke). transitive
"The performance was fine until he cracked that dead baby joke."
32
To break down (a complex molecule), especially with the application of heat: to pyrolyse. transitive
"Acetone is cracked to ketene and methane at 700°C."
33
To circumvent software restrictions such as regional coding or time limits. transitive
"That software licence will expire tomorrow unless we can crack it."
34
To open a canned beverage, or any packaged drink or food. informal, transitive
"I'd love to crack open a beer."
35
To brag; to boast. obsolete
"To whom the boaſter, that all knights did blot, / With proud diſdaine did ſcornefull anſwere make; […] And further did vncomely ſpeaches crake."
36
To be ruined or impaired; to fail. archaic, colloquial
"The credit[…]of exchequers cracks, when little comes in and much goes out."
37
To barely reach or attain (a measurement or extent). colloquial
"An underground band that never cracked the Hot 100"
38
To have sex with, especially penetrative sex.
"[…] they end up thinking that they can escape the pain of incel-dom by “cracking” a femboy […]"

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English crakken, craken, from Old English cracian (“to resound, crack”), from Proto-West Germanic *krakōn, from Proto-Germanic *krakōną (“to crack, crackle, shriek”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gerh₂- (“to resound, cry hoarsely”). Cognate with Scots crak (“to crack”), West Frisian kreakje (“to crack”), Dutch kraken (“to crunch, creak, squeak”), Low German kraken (“to crack”), German krachen (“to crash, crack, creak”), Lithuanian gi̇̀rgžděti (“to creak, squeak”), Old Armenian կարկաչ (karkačʻ), Sanskrit गर्जति (gárjati, “to roar, hum”). Compare typologically English crevice (<< Latin crepō), Bulgarian пукнатина (puknatina) (akin to пу́кам (púkam)), Russian тре́щина (tréščina) (akin to треск (tresk)), щель (ščelʹ) (akin to щёлкать (ščólkatʹ)).

Etymology 2

Etymology 3

Slang first attested 1793, perhaps from the verb in the sense of doing something quickly or with intelligence, or in the sense of "speaking boastingly" and having something to be proud of.

Etymology 4

Slang first attested 1793, perhaps from the verb in the sense of doing something quickly or with intelligence, or in the sense of "speaking boastingly" and having something to be proud of.

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