: a painful spasmodic condition of muscles (as of the neck or back)
cricked; cricking; cricks
1
: to cause a crick in
crick one's neck
2
: to turn or twist (something, such as one's head) especially into a strained position
Examples of crick in a Sentence
Noun (1)
got a crick in my neck from sleeping while sitting up
Verb
He cricked his back sleeping on the sofa.
Recent Examples on the Web
Staff Author, Travel + Leisure, 21 Dec. 2024
Don’t let tech neck put a crick in your running posture.
—Outside Online, 23 Nov. 2022
More of a crick in his neck.
—Bryan Washington, The New Yorker, 4 July 2022
One of my favorite distinctions is when Steve described the difference between calling a particular stream a creek or a crick.
—Anchorage Daily News, 11 Apr. 2021
Old, lumpy pillows that give you a crick in your neck won't do you any favors when trying to fall asleep.
—Lauren Corona, chicagotribune.com, 29 Mar. 2021
If watching from your sofa or bed gives you a crick in your neck?
—Popsci Commerce Team, Popular Science, 23 Feb. 2021
Yet most of us reach a day when merely sleeping in the wrong position on a pillow that’s too soft or too flat brings on a crick in the neck that sticks around for days.
—Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 10 June 2020
So massage that crick in your neck, put on your blue-light glasses and settle down with these digital offerings.
—Scottie Andrew, CNN, 18 Apr. 2020
Hazlitt, 12 Mar. 2025
That nagging ache in your lower back, sharp pain in your wrist, or crick in your neck means something.
—Simon Hill, Wired, 2 Mar. 2022
The gear selector for the standard six-speed manual gearbox also is a mite too far back in the cabin, cricking elbows during shifts into the even-numbered ratios.
—Mike Duff, Car and Driver, 23 Mar. 2018
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Noun
Huzi Infinity Travel Neck Pillow Avoid neck cricks and pains with this infinity neck pillow that provides 360-degree support.
—Staff Author, Travel + Leisure, 21 Dec. 2024
Don’t let tech neck put a crick in your running posture.
—Outside Online, 23 Nov. 2022
More of a crick in his neck.
—Bryan Washington, The New Yorker, 4 July 2022
One of my favorite distinctions is when Steve described the difference between calling a particular stream a creek or a crick.
—Anchorage Daily News, 11 Apr. 2021
Old, lumpy pillows that give you a crick in your neck won't do you any favors when trying to fall asleep.
—Lauren Corona, chicagotribune.com, 29 Mar. 2021
If watching from your sofa or bed gives you a crick in your neck?
—Popsci Commerce Team, Popular Science, 23 Feb. 2021
Yet most of us reach a day when merely sleeping in the wrong position on a pillow that’s too soft or too flat brings on a crick in the neck that sticks around for days.
—Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 10 June 2020
So massage that crick in your neck, put on your blue-light glasses and settle down with these digital offerings.
—Scottie Andrew, CNN, 18 Apr. 2020
Verb
The door between the bedroom and corridor had opened in the night, letting in a cold draft that cricked my neck painfully the next morning.
—Hazlitt, 12 Mar. 2025
That nagging ache in your lower back, sharp pain in your wrist, or crick in your neck means something.
—Simon Hill, Wired, 2 Mar. 2022
The gear selector for the standard six-speed manual gearbox also is a mite too far back in the cabin, cricking elbows during shifts into the even-numbered ratios.
—Mike Duff, Car and Driver, 23 Mar. 2018
Cite this Entry
“Crick.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crick. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
crick
1 of 2 noun
: a painful spasmodic condition of muscles (as of the neck or back)
crick
2 of 2 transitive verb
: to cause a crick in (as the neck)
Biographical Definition
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