Emily Dickinson Lexicon

CREV'IS, n.

The craw-fish. [Little used.]

CREW, n. [contracted from Sax. cread, or cruth, a crowd; D. rot; G. rotte; Sw. rote; Eng. rout, an assembly, a collection, from gathering or pressing. Class Rd.]

1. A company of people associated; as, a noble crew; a gallant crew. Spenser. Chevy-Chase.
2. A company, in a low or bad sense, which is now most usual; a herd; as, a rebel crew. Milton. So we say, a miserable crew.
3. The company of seamen who man a ship, vessel, or boat; the company belonging to a vessel. Also, the company or gang of carpenter, gunner, boatswain, &c. It is appropriated to the common sailors.

CREW, v. [pret. of Crow, but the regular preterit and participle, crowed, is now most commonly used.]

CREW'EL, n. [Qu. D. klewel.]

Yarn twisted and wound on a knot or ball, or two-threaded worsted. – Johnson. Bailey.

CREW'ET, n.

See CRUET.

CRIB, n. [Sax. crybb; D. krib; Sw. krubba; Dan. krybbe; Ir. grib. Qu. the root of grapple, to catch.]

1. The manger of a stable, in which oxen and cows feed. In America, it is distinguished from a rack for horses. Where no oxen are, the crib is clean. – Prov. xiv. The manger for other beasts. The ass knoweth his master's crib. – Is. i.
2. A small habitation or cottage. – Shak.
3. A stall for oxen.
4. A case or box in salt-works. – Encyc.
5. A small building, raised on posts, for storing Indian corn. – U. States.
6. A small frame for a child to sleep in.

CRIB, v.t.

To shut or confine in a narrow habitation; to cage. – Shak.

CRIB'BAGE, n.

A game at cards.

CRIB'BED, pp.

Shut up; confined; caged.

CRIB'BING, ppr.

Shutting in a crib; confining.

CRIB'BLE, n. [L. cribellum, from cribrum, and this from cribro, to stiff; Sp. criba, cribar; Port. crivo; It. cribro, cribrare, and crivello, crivellare Fr. crible, cribler; W. cribaw, to comb or card; Arm. kribat; Ir. riobhar, a sieve; allied to Eng. garble. See Ch. כרבל, Arm. غَرْبَلَ garbal; Ch. רבל, to sift or riddle. Class Rb, No. 30, 34, 46.]

1. A corn-sieve or riddle.
2. Coarse flower or meal. [Not used in the United States.]

CRIB'BLE, v.t.

To sift; to cause to pass through a sieve or riddle.

CRIB'BLED, pp.

Sifted.

CRIB'BLING, ppr.

Sifting.

CRI-BRA'TION, n. [See Cribble.]

The act of sifting or riddling; used in pharmacy.

CRIB'RI-FORM, a. [L. cribrum, a sieve, and forma, form.]

Resembling a sieve or riddle; a term applied to the lamin of the ethmoid bone, through which the fibers of the olfactory nerve pass to the nose. – Anat.

CRICH'TON-ITE, n.

A mineral, so called from Dr. Crichton, physician to the emperor of Russia. It has a velvet black color, and crystallizes in very acute small rhomboids. It occurs in primitive rocks with octahedrite. – Ure.

CRICK, n. [See Creak.]

1. The creaking of a door. [Not used.]
2. A spasmodic affection of some part of the body, as of the neck or back; local spasm or cramp.

CRICK'ET, n.¹ [D. krekel, from the root of creak; W. cricell, cricket, and cricellu, to chirp or chatter; crig, a crack.]

An insect of the genus Gryllus, belonging to the order of Hemipters. There are several species, so named probably on account of their creaking or chirping voice. The cricket chirping in the hearth. – Goldsmith.

CRICK'ET, n.² [Qu. Sax. cricc, a stick.]

1. A play or exercise with bats and ball. – Pope.
2. A low stool. [British kriget, a little elevation. – Whitaker. Qu. Sw. krycka, stilts or crutches.]

CRICK'ET-ER, n.

One who plays at cricket. – Duncombe.

CRICK'ET-MATCH, n.

A match at cricket. – Duncombe.

CRIED, v. [pret. and pp. of Cry.]

CRI'ER, or CRY'ER, n. [See Cry.]

One who cries; one who makes proclamation. The crier of a court is an officer whose duty is to proclaim the orders or commands of the court, to open or adjourn the court, keep silence, &c. A cryer is also employed to give notice of auctions, and for other purposes.

CRIME, n. [L. crimen; Gr. κριμα; It. crime; Port. id.; Sp. crimen; Fr. crime; Arm. crim; Norm. crisme. This word is from the root of Gr. κρινω, L. cerno, to separate, to judge, to decree, to condemn. But this verb seems to be composed of two distinct roots, for in Latin, the pret. is crevi, which can not be formed from cerno; and in Greek, the derivatives, κριθω, κρισις, κριτης, can not be regularly formed from κρινω. The Gr. κριμα is undoubtedly a contraction, for in Norman the word is crisme. The root then of these derivatives is the same as of the Ir. criathar, a sieve, W. rhidyll, Eng. riddle; W. rhidiaw, to secrete, to separate. We have screen, a riddle, from the root of κρινω, and riddle, from the Celtic root of κρισις, κριτης. To judge is to decide, to separate, or cut off, hence to condemn; a crime is that which is condemned.]

1. An act which violates a law, divine or human; an act which violates a rule of moral duty; an offense against the laws of right, prescribed by God or man, against any rule of duty plainly implied in those laws. A crime may consist in omission or neglect, as well as in commission, or positive transgression. The commander of a fortress who suffers the enemy to take possession by neglect, is as really criminal, as one who voluntary opens the gates without resistance. But in a more common or restricted sense, a crime denotes an offense, or violation of public law, of a deeper and more atrocious nature; a public wrong; or a violation of the commands of God, and the offenses against the laws made to preserve the public rights; as treason, murder, robbery, theft, arson, &c. The minor wrongs committed against individuals or private rights, are denominated trespasses, and the minor wrongs against public rights are called misdemeanors. Crimes and misdemeanors are punishable by indictment, information, or public prosecution; trespasses or private injuries, at the suit of the individuals injured. But in many cases an act is considered both as a public offense and a trespass, and is punishable both by the public and the individual injured.
2. Any great wickedness; iniquity; wrong. No crime was thine, if 'tis no crime to love. – Pope. Capital crime, a crime punishable with death.