crabbed (ˈkræbɪd
)
Definitions
adjective
- surly; irritable; perverse
- (esp of handwriting) cramped and hard to decipher
Alternative Forms
ˈcrabbedly adverb ˈcrabbedness nounWord Origin
C13: probably from crabC13: probably from 1 (from its wayward gait), influenced by () (from its tartness) (from its wayward gait), influenced by crab(apple) (from its tartness)1crab1 (kræb)
Definitions
noun
- any chiefly marine decapod crustacean of the genus any chiefly marine decapod crustacean of the genus Cancer and related genera (section any chiefly marine decapod crustacean of the genus and related genera (section Brachyura), having a broad flattened carapace covering the cephalothorax, beneath which is folded the abdomen. The first pair of limbs are modified as pincers See also fiddler crab , soft-shell crab , pea crab , oyster crab cancroid
- any of various similar or related arthropods, such as the hermit crab and horseshoe crab
- short for crab louse
- a manoeuvre in which an aircraft flies slightly into the crosswind to compensate for drift
- a mechanical lifting device, esp the travelling hoist of a gantry crane
- wrestling See Boston crab
- See catch a crab
verb
Word forms: crabs, crabbing, crabbed
- (intr) to hunt or catch crabs
- (tr) to fly (an aircraft) slightly into a crosswind to compensate for drift
- (intr) nautical to move forwards with a slight sideways motion, as to overcome an offsetting current
- (intr) to move sideways
See also
crabsWord Origin
Old English crabba; related to Old Norse krabbi, Old High German krebiz crab, Dutch krabben to scratch2crab2 (kræb) informal
Definitions
verb
Word forms: crabs, crabbing, crabbed
- (intr) to find fault; grumble
- (tr) mainly US to spoil (esp in the phrase crab someone's act)
noun
- an irritable person
- See draw the crabs
Word Origin
C16: probably back formation from crabbedUsage examples
The crabbed , grizzled organ of Age, pressed against the soft lips of Youth.
, Doubting Thomas (1986)Soon afterwards a letter on small notepaper, and in tiny crabbed handwriting, landed on the mat.
Times, Sunday Times (2002)In their minds, the Act of Union of 1707 had closed a door on an earlier era, on Scotland's cramped, crabbed and violent past.
, THE SCOTTISH ENLIGHTENMENT: The Scots' Invention of the Modern World (2002)