crude

¹crude

adjective \ˈkrüd\

crud·ercrud·est

Definition of CRUDE

1

: existing in a natural state and unaltered by cooking or processing <crude oil>

2

archaic : unripe, immature

3

: marked by the primitive, gross, or elemental or by uncultivated simplicity or vulgarity <a crude stereotype>

4

: rough or inexpert in plan or execution <a crude shelter>

5

: lacking a covering, glossing, or concealing element : obvious <crude facts>

6

: tabulated without being broken down into classes <the crude death rate>

— crude·ly adverb

— crude·ness noun

Examples of CRUDE

1. They built a crude shelter out of branches.
2. a crude summary of the country's history
3. She first described the procedure in crude terms, and then went into more detail.

Origin of CRUDE

Middle English, from Latin crudus raw, crude, undigested — more at raw

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to CRUDE

Synonyms

native, natural, raw, rude, undressed, unprocessed, unrefined, untreated, in the raw, in the rough

Antonyms

dressed, processed, refined, treated

Related Words

undeveloped; rough-hewn, semifinished, unfinished, unpolished; uncooked; impure, unfiltered

Near Antonyms

filtered, pure, purified

See Synonym Discussion at rude

Rhymes with CRUDE

brood, crowd, dude, feud, food, hued, Jude, lewd, lude, mood, nude, oud, pood, prude, pseud, rood, rude, shrewd, snood, stewed, 'tude, wood, wud

²crude

noun

Definition of CRUDE

: a substance in its natural unprocessed state; especially : unrefined petroleum

First Known Use of CRUDE

circa 1904