crank 1 of 3

noun

ˈkraŋk How to pronounce crank (audio)
Definition of cranknext
1
as in crab
an irritable and complaining person he's always a crank until he has his morning coffee

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in eccentric
a person of odd or whimsical habits she's a bit of a crank, but still a good-hearted person

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in whim
a sudden impulsive and apparently unmotivated idea or action his endless and unpredictable cranks made spending time with him exhausting

Synonyms & Similar Words

crank

2 of 3

adjective

chiefly dialect
1
as in triumphant
having or expressing feelings of joy or triumph you shouldn't feel so crank, considering that you beat the worst softball team in the league

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in joyful
joyously unrestrained folks around here are downright crank that a local boy won a gold medal in the Olympics

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

crank

3 of 3

verb

as in to wind

Related Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of crank
Noun
The firefighters ultimately used a hand crank to move the elevator, and Wallace told the outlet that the museum gave the everyone lifetime free passes in return. — Liza Esquibias, USA Today, 10 July 2026 The crank makes opening and closing easy, and the cloth is UV-resistant and waterproof. — Shea Simmons, Southern Living, 3 July 2026
Verb
Crank Your Thermostat Down No matter how warm your space feels, avoid the urge to crank your thermostat down to a dramatically lower temperature. — Abby Monteil, The Spruce, 22 July 2026 That prediction stems in part from his expectation that technology companies will crank up their prices as their products become more essential to companies like Allianz. — Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 3 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for crank
Recent Examples of Synonyms for crank
  1. crab
  2. eccentric
  3. whim
  4. triumphant
  5. joyful
  6. wind
  7. bear
  8. nut
Noun
  • More specifically, insects are invertebrates (animals without backbones) and are part of the arthropod phylum, which also includes spiders, crabs, and centipedes.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Aug. 2026
  • He's garnered more than 3 million followers from his content promoting the crab industry.
    — Brittney Melton, NPR, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of crab
Noun
  • With its loose ends and digressions, Dream Me a Dream stays true to those idiosyncratic instincts while retaining enough of the welcoming glow of Dance of Love to make this an affecting farewell from an endearing eccentric.
    — Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Pitchfork, 22 June 2026
  • The eccentric cuz is quick to try and help Bobby solve problems, which often gets him into trouble, but ultimately pushes him out of his shell.
    — Skyler Trepel, Entertainment Weekly, 20 June 2026
Definition of eccentric
Noun
  • Such temperatures also ground firefighting aircraft, leaving cities, towns and forests even more vulnerable to a wildfire’s whims.
    — John Vaillant, Time, 8 Aug. 2026
  • If the project seems somewhat convoluted and unnecessarily complex, Dreier has emphasized that’s in part because the US space program has been subject to budget uncertainties and the shifting whims of presidential administrations.
    — Jackie Wattles, CNN Money, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of whim
Adjective
  • Hezly Rivera, the defending national champion, is in fourth place after a fall on uneven bars, while Skye Blakley made a triumphant return to the all-around at the elite level.
    — Nancy Armour, USA Today, 8 Aug. 2026
  • House of Stassi was supposed to be Stassi’s triumphant return to form entirely on her own terms.
    — Caroline Framke, Vulture, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of triumphant
Adjective
  • Rather than install a conventional luxury department-store anchor, Fontainebleau chose a retailer built around ease and joyful discovery.
    — Kate Hardcastle, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Four years have passed in joyful ways— Wouldst stay those old times dear?
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of joyful
Verb
  • But there were no bears to be found right then on the Bayou, so after a few days camp was moved to Bear Lake, a long, winding body of water once part of a river but now stillwater.
    — Paul Schullery, Outdoor Life, 13 Aug. 2026
  • While the innovation doesn’t prevent all cracking, the DNGEs' particulate formation forces cracks to wind through soft regions instead of traveling in straight lines.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of wind
Noun
  • The sighting follows recent bear reports in nearby cities in western Placer County including Lincoln, Rocklin and Roseville.
    — Richard Ramos, CBS News, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Instead, that’s just a ploy to put him in an empty room, then pour honey on him and dump salmon in his lap — and then unleash a bear.
    — Tim Grierson, Vulture, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of bear
Noun
  • Some truck owners prefer using nuts, bolts, and washers instead.
    — BestReviews, Mercury News, 11 Aug. 2026
  • China’s food imports reached $215 billion in 2023, the world’s largest at the time, with nearly 85 percent of its soybeans, more than 67 percent of its oil crops and nuts, and nearly 25 percent of its beef coming from foreign suppliers.
    — Caitlin Welsh, Foreign Affairs, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of nut

Phrases Containing crank

Browse Nearby Words

craniums
crank
cranked
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Crank.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crank. Accessed 15 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on crank

Nglish: Translation of crank for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about crank

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Words of the Week - Aug. 14

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All