as in bear
an irritable and complaining person
you're always such a crab in the morning!
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in to complain
to express dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment usually tiresomely
their two-year-old whined and crabbed for the whole car trip
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to damage
to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
crabbed the blossoming romance by becoming moody and demanding
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of crab
Farideh Sadeghin, Saveur, 2 Apr. 2026
Just like the arms used for tracking down a crab, the hectocotylus expresses a high concentration of chemotactile receptors, alongside mechanoreceptors.
—Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 2 Apr. 2026
Tara Duggan, San Francisco Chronicle, 19 Dec. 2025
Go crabbing, clamming, hiking, or mushroom foraging with a guide, head out for a fat-tire bike ride, or enjoy a beach bonfire, already set up for you, for the coziest way to end a day on the coast.
—Molly Allen, Travel + Leisure, 28 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for crab
Noun
If the resulting soup is too thick, adjust with more crab stock as needed.
—Farideh Sadeghin, Saveur, 2 Apr. 2026
Just like the arms used for tracking down a crab, the hectocotylus expresses a high concentration of chemotactile receptors, alongside mechanoreceptors.
—Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 2 Apr. 2026
Verb
Rules designed to protect endangered humpback whales and Pacific leatherback sea turtles from getting entangled in crabbing gear have pushed back the start of the commercial season, formerly Nov. 15, in each of the past seven years.
—Tara Duggan, San Francisco Chronicle, 19 Dec. 2025
Go crabbing, clamming, hiking, or mushroom foraging with a guide, head out for a fat-tire bike ride, or enjoy a beach bonfire, already set up for you, for the coziest way to end a day on the coast.
—Molly Allen, Travel + Leisure, 28 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for crab
Recent Examples of Synonyms for crab
Noun
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The measure, which is backed by two Native American tribes, calls for a comprehensive study on the feasibility of bringing back the golden bears that festoon the state’s flag.—
Sharon Bernstein,
Sacbee.com,
8 Apr. 2026
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Wolves and coyotes are also banned, as well as all bear species, including black, grizzly and brown bears.—
Stephen Underwood,
Hartford Courant,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
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An employee reached out to Summers and Taylor to complain.—
Ronan Farrow,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
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Coaches Dawn Staley of South Carolina and Geno Auriemma of UConn had a heated courtside exchange afterward as Auriemma, in character, complained about the officiating and proved an ungracious loser, but at least apologized a day later.—
Greg Cote
April 5,
Miami Herald,
5 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The Red Cross said the crash damaged the building and forced three families — a total of 10 people — from their homes.—
Eva Andersen,
CBS News,
6 Apr. 2026
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Reports and satellite images later showed large parts of the city heavily damaged or reduced to rubble.—
Maliha Rahman,
Sun Sentinel,
5 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The pervasive popularity of the show and its creator will be the reason the complainers have no voice.—
Rich Heldenfels,
Boston Herald,
22 Mar. 2026
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An energy vampire has bad body language, the complaining look on their face, the vocal complainer.—
Edgar Thompson,
The Orlando Sentinel,
8 Feb. 2026
Verb
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For families This hotel doesn’t scream family-friendly and there’s no kids’ menu in the restaurants.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
1 Apr. 2026
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Martens plans to scream, if not louder, than with more originality.—
Rachel Tashjian,
CNN Money,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
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No people were injured, but a resident's cat died in the fire.—
Jose Fabian,
CBS News,
8 Apr. 2026
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They were normally injured, inferior and underachieving.—
Scott Fowler,
Charlotte Observer,
8 Apr. 2026
Noun
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These ideas have thrived through generations of cranks and propagandists and are now omnipresent.—
Mike Rothschild,
Big Think,
31 Mar. 2026
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The upper shell lifted with a manual hydraulics crank to full-height camping form.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
29 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The caterer’s dead daughter, Marketa, is sung by Vilma Jää, an ethno-pop performer whose forays into Finnish folk techniques have her slinging her voice up into thrillingly high engine-whines.—
Justin Davidson,
Vulture,
7 Apr. 2026
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For the puppy, leaving its mother and littermates can be stressful at first, and crying or whining is normal.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Crab.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crab. Accessed 9 Apr. 2026.
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