Emily Dickinson Lexicon

CRIME'FUL, a.

Criminal; wicked; partaking of wrong; contrary to law, right, or duty. – Shak.

CRIME'LESS, a.

Free from crime; innocent. – Shak.

CRIM'IN-AL, a.

1. Guilty of a crime; applied to persons.
2. Partaking of a crime; involving a crime; that violates public law, divine or human; as, theft is a criminal act.
3. That violates moral obligation; wicked.
4. Relating to crimes; opposed to civil; as, a criminal code; criminal law. Crim. con. Criminal conversation; unlawful intercourse with a married woman.

CRIM'IN-AL, n.

A person who has committed an offense against public law; a violater of law, divine or human. More particularly, a person indicted or charged with a public offense, and one who is found guilty, by verdict, confession, or proof.

CRIM-IN-AL'I-TY, or CRIM'IN-AL-NESS, n.

The quality of being criminal, or a violation of law; guiltiness; the quality of being guilty of a crime. This is by no means the only criterion of criminality. – Blackstone, iv. ch. 17. Panoplist. Encyc.

CRIM'IN-AL-LY, adv.

In violation of public law; in violation of divine law; wickedly; in a wrong or iniquitous manner.

CRIM'IN-ATE, v.t. [L. criminor, criminatus.]

To accuse; to charge with a crime; to alledge to be guilty; of a crime, offense, or wrong. Our municipal laws do not require the offender to plead guilty or criminate himself. – Scott on Lev. vi. Beloe's Herod.

CRIM'IN-A-TED, pp.

Accused; charged with a crime.

CRIM'IN-A-TING, ppr.

Accusing; alledging to be guilty.

CRIM-IN-A'TION, n. [L. criminatio.]

The act of accusing; accusation; charge of having been guilty of a criminal act, offense, or wrong. – Johnson.

CRIM'IN-A-TO-RY, a.

Relating to accusation; accusing.

CRIM'IN-OUS, a.

Very wicked; hainous; involving great crime. [Not used.] – Hammond.

CRIM'IN-OUS-LY, adv.

Criminally; hainously; enormously. [Not used.]

CRIM'IN-OUS-NESS, n.

Wickedness; guilt; criminality. [Not used.] – King Charles.

CRIM'O-SIN, n. [or adj. or v. See CRIMSON.]

CRIMP, a. [Sax. acrymman, to crumble; D. kruim, a crum; kruimelen, to crumble. See Crumble.]

1. Easily crumbled; friable; brittle. [Little used.] The fowler … treads the crimp earth. – Philips.
2. Not consistent. [Qu. Dan. krum, crooked, or supra, easily broken.] [Not used.] – Arbuthnot.

CRIMP, n.

1. In England, an agent for coal-merchants, and for persons concerned in shipping. – Bailey.
2. One who decoys another into the naval or military service.
3. A game at cards. [Obs.]

CRIMP, v.t. [W. crimpiaw, to pinch, to form into a ridge or rim.]

To catch; to seize; to pinch and hold. [See Crimple.]

CRIMP, v.t. [Sax. gecrympt.]

To curl or frizzle; as, to crimp the hair. This is evidently the same word as the foregoing.

CRIMP'AGE, n.

The act of crimping.

CRIMP'LE, v.t. [D. krimpen; G. id.; Sw. krimpa; Dan. krymper; Scot. crimp; W. crimpiaw, to shrink, to pinch; crwm, crom, curving, bending, shrinking; crymu, to bend. See Crumple and Rumple, from the same root, W. rhimp, rim, a rim.]

To contract or draw together; to shrink; to cause to shrink; to curl. – Wiseman.

CRIMP'LED, pp.

Contracted; shrunk; curled.

CRIMP'LING, ppr.

Contracting; shrinking; curling; hobbling. – Ash.

CRIM'SON, a.

Of a beautiful deep red; as, the crimson blush of modesty; a crimson stream of blood.

CRIM'SON, n. [krim'zn; It. cremisi, cremisino; Fr. cramoisi; Sp. carmesi; Arm. carmoasy; D. karmozyn; G. karmosin; Sw. karmesin; Dan. karmesie; from قِرْمِزٌ kirmizon, kermes, the cochineal insect or berry.]

A deep red color; a red tinged with blue; also, a red color in general; as, the virgin crimson of modesty. – Shak. He made the vail of blue, and purple, and crimson. – 2 Chron. iii.