Synonyms of cranks

cranks 1 of 2

noun

plural of crank

1

as in eccentrics

a person of odd or whimsical habits

she's a bit of a crank, but still a good-hearted person

Synonyms & Similar Words

• eccentrics
• nuts
• originals
• crackpots
• kooks
• characters
• screwballs
• flakes
• oddballs
• mavericks
• weirdos
• nutters
• codgers
• zanies
• bohemians
• fruitcakes
• freaks
• rarities
• nutcases
• pieces of work
• cracks
• oddities
• head cases
• odd ducks
• quizzes
• crackbrains
• nonconformists
• geezers
• coots
• quixotes
• curios
• fantasts
• fantasticoes

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• sheep
• followers
• conformists
• conformers

2

as in crabs

an irritable and complaining person

he's always a crank until he has his morning coffee

Synonyms & Similar Words

• crabs
• complainers
• bears
• mutterers
• hunks
• grousers
• curmudgeons
• grumps
• grouches
• murmurers
• sourpusses
• gripers
• grumblers
• croakers
• growlers
• whiners
• kickers
• fussers
• bellyachers
• soreheads
• crosspatches
• defeatists
• killjoys
• spoilsports
• malcontents
• quibblers
• party poopers
• nitpickers
• crocks
• pessimists
• naggers
• hypochondriacs
• faultfinders
• grinches
• objectors
• repiners

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• optimists
• Pollyannas
• happy campers

3

as in whims

a sudden impulsive and apparently unmotivated idea or action

his endless and unpredictable cranks made spending time with him exhausting

Synonyms & Similar Words

• whims
• notions
• bees
• caprices
• maggots
• whimsies
• vagaries
• megrims
• thoughts
• pictures
• freaks
• fancies
• kinks
• fantasies
• vagrancies
• humors
• impressions
• bees in one's bonnet
• whimsicalities
• images
• concepts
• impetuosities
• conceits
• conceptions
• inspirations
• brainstorms
• mind's eyes

cranks

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of crank

as in coils

Related Words

• coils
• winds
• reels
• screws
• twiddles
• circulates
• pivots
• wheels
• spins
• swivels
• rotates
• unscrews
• swirls
• revolves
• twirls
• turns
• whirls
• swings
• twists
• rolls

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of cranks

Noun

Casement windows swing out using cranks to open rather than sliding up or to the side on a track like standard windows. — Timothy Dale, The Spruce, 17 June 2026

In 2018, the state legislature passed a law that outlawed the possession and sale of bump stocks, along with trigger cranks and devices that make the gun operate like an automatic weapon. — Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 23 Apr. 2026

In any case, the TM-B defining feature is the software that sits between the cranks and the motor, shaping the whole cycling experience. — ArsTechnica, 16 Apr. 2026

The Republican Party embraced neoconservatism; Buchanan and his cohort were the stewards of an ideology for cranks. — Antonia Hitchens, New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2026

These ideas have thrived through generations of cranks and propagandists and are now omnipresent. — Mike Rothschild, Big Think, 31 Mar. 2026

But as with the dismantling of huge swaths of our research capacity, the original refusal to even consider this mRNA flu vaccine on what are obviously ideological grounds shows future potential for the FDA to affect a hell of a lot more people than just the cranks who agree with them. — The Orlando Sentinel, 21 Feb. 2026

Early locations had a giant clown head popping out of a square box on the roof, based on children’s jack-in-the-box toys, music boxes with cranks that, when turned, cause figures to pop out of their lids. — Fielding Buck, Oc Register, 16 Feb. 2026

But as with the dismantling of huge swaths of our research capacity, this refusal to even consider this mRNA flu vaccine on what are obviously ideological grounds is going to affect a hell of a lot more people than just the cranks who agree with them. — New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 13 Feb. 2026