What does "crank" mean?
An ailment, ache.
Crank
/kɹæŋk/ adj, name, noun, verb, slang
adj, name, noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An ailment, ache.
- Grammar: crank is listed as adj, name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: aberration, abnormal, abnormality, accelerator.
- Useful contrasts: cease, conformist, dampen.
- Usage evidence: Hey! I don't want any crank calls - not at this hour.
How to use "crank"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "crank" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "crank" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "crank" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "crank" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "crank" is acting as adj, name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "aberration" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "crank", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An ailment, ache. dialectal
- 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.
"I grind my coffee by hand with a coffee grinder with a crank handle."
- 3 a hand tool consisting of a rotating shaft with parallel handle wordnet
- 4 An ill-tempered or nasty person. informal
"Billy-Bob is a nasty old crank! He chased my cat away."
- 5 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.; Clipping of crankshaft. abbreviation, alt-of, clipping
Show 14 more definitions
- 6 an amphetamine derivative (trade name Methedrine) used in the form of a crystalline hydrochloride; used as a stimulant to the nervous system and as an appetite suppressant wordnet
- 7 A twist or turn of the mind; caprice; whim;
- 8 The act of converting power into motion, by turning a crankshaft.
"Yes, a crank was all it needed to start."
- 9 a whimsically eccentric person wordnet
- 10 A fit of temper or passion.
"Violent of temper; subject to sudden cranks."
- 11 Any bend, turn, or winding, as of a passage. archaic
"So many turning cranks these have, so many crooks."
- 12 a bad-tempered person wordnet
- 13 A person who is considered strange or odd by others, and may behave in unconventional ways. British, dated, informal
"John is a crank because he talks to himself."
- 14 Synonym of methamphetamine. US, slang
"Danny got abscesses from shooting all that bathtub crank."
- 15 An amateur in science or other technical subjects who persistently advocates flawed theories. informal
"That crank next door thinks he’s created cold fusion in his garage."
- 16 A twist or turn in speech; word play consisting in a change of the form or meaning of a word. rare
"Quips and Cranks, and wanton Wiles,"
- 17 A baseball fan. archaic, slang
- 18 The penis. slang
"It was going to be hard not to blow with a girl like her sucking on his crank."
- 19 A sick person; an invalid. obsolete
"Thou art a counterfeit crank, a cheater."
Verb
- 1 To turn by means of a crank. transitive
"Motorists had to crank their engine by hand."
- 2 bend into the shape of a crank wordnet
- 3 To turn a crank. intransitive
"He's been cranking all day and yet it refuses to crank."
- 4 fasten with a crank wordnet
- 5 To turn. intransitive
"He's been cranking all day and yet it refuses to crank."
Show 7 more definitions
- 6 rotate with a crank wordnet
- 7 To cause to spin via other means, as though turned by a crank. transitive
"I turn the key and crank the engine; yet it doesn't turn over"
- 8 start by cranking wordnet
- 9 To act in a cranky manner; to behave unreasonably and irritably, especially through complaining. intransitive
"Quit cranking about your spilt milk!"
- 10 travel along a zigzag path wordnet
- 11 To be running at a high level of output or effort. intransitive
"By one hour into the shift, the boys were really cranking."
- 12 To run with a winding course; to double; to crook; to wind and turn. dated, intransitive
"See how this river comes me cranking in."
Adjective
- 1 Hard; difficult. dialectal
- 2 Strange; weird; odd. informal
- 3 Bent; twisted; crooked; distorted; out of repair. dialectal
- 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!"
Show 1 more definition
- 6 Full of spirit; brisk; lively; sprightly; overconfident; opinionated.
"He who was a little before bedred[…]was now cranke and lustie."
Adjective
- 1 (used of boats) inclined to heel over easily under sail wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname. countable, uncountable
- 2 A small village in Rainford parish, St Helens borough, Merseyside, England (OS grid ref SJ5099). countable, uncountable
Antonyms
Example
"Hey! I don't want any crank calls - not at this hour."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "crank"?
Common synonyms include: aberration, abnormal, abnormality, accelerator, aficionado, alien.
How do you use "crank" in a sentence?
Hey! I don't want any crank calls - not at this hour.
How do you pronounce "crank"?
Pronounced /kɹæŋk/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
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”).
Etymology 2
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.