[cres.cent] n [ME cressant, fr. MF creissant, fr. prp. of creistre to grow, increase, fr. L crescere; akin to OHG hirsi millet, Lith serti to feed, Gk koros boy] (15c) 1 a: the moon at any stage between new moon and first quarter and between last quarter and the succeeding new moon when less than half of the illuminated hemisphere is visible b: the figure of the moon at such a stage defined by a convex and a concave edge
2: something shaped like a crescent -- cres.cen.tic adj
[2]crescent adj [L crescent-, crescens, prp. of crescere] (1574): marked by an increase Cres.cent trademark--used for an adjustable open-end wrench