Cracknel to Cramp
Cracknel
(Crack"nel) n. [F. craquelin, fr. D. krakeling, fr. krakken to crack. See Crack, v. t.] A
hard brittle cake or biscuit. Spenser.
Cracksman
(Cracks"man) n., pl. Cracksmen A burglar. [Slang]
Cracovian
(Cra*co"vi*an) a. Of or pertaining to Cracow in Poland.
Cracovienne
(||Cra*co`vi*enne") n. [F., fr. Cracow, the city.] (Mus.) A lively Polish dance, in 2-4 time.
Cracowes
(Cra"cowes) n. pl. Long-toed boots or shoes formerly worn in many parts of Europe; — so
called from Cracow, in Poland, where they were first worn in the fourteenth century. Fairholt.
Cradle
(Cra"dle) n. [AS. cradel, cradol, prob. from Celtic; cf. Gael. creathall, Ir. craidhal, W. cryd a
shaking or rocking, a cradle; perh. akin to E. crate.]
1. A bed or cot for a baby, oscillating on rockers or swinging on pivots; hence, the place of origin, or
in which anything is nurtured or protected in the earlier period of existence; as, a cradle of crime; the
cradle of liberty.
The cradle that received thee at thy birth.
Cowper.
No sooner was I crept out of my cradle
But I was made a king, at nine months old.
Shak.
2. Infancy, or very early life.
From their cradles bred together.
Shak.
A form of worship in which they had been educated from their cradles.
Clarendon.
3. (Agric.) An implement consisting of a broad scythe for cutting grain, with a set of long fingers parallel
to the scythe, designed to receive the grain, and to lay it evenly in a swath.
4. (Engraving) A tool used in mezzotint engraving, which, by a rocking motion, raises burrs on the
surface of the plate, so preparing the ground.
5. A framework of timbers, or iron bars, moving upon ways or rollers, used to support, lift, or carry ships
or other vessels, heavy guns, etc., as up an inclined plane, or across a strip of land, or in launching a
ship.
6. (Med.) (a) A case for a broken or dislocated limb. (b) A frame to keep the bedclothes from contact
with the person.
7. (Mining) (a) A machine on rockers, used in washing out auriferous earth; — also called a rocker.
[U.S.] (b) A suspended scaffold used in shafts.
8. (Carp.) The ribbing for vaulted ceilings and arches intended to be covered with plaster. Knight.
9. (Naut.) The basket or apparatus in which, when a line has been made fast to a wrecked ship from
the shore, the people are brought off from the wreck.
Cat's cradle. See under Cat. — Cradle hole, a sunken place in a road, caused by thawing, or by
travel over a soft spot. — Cradle scythe, a broad scythe used in a cradle for cutting grain.
Cradle
(Cra"dle), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Cradled (-d'ld); p. pr. & vb. n. Cradling ]
