I. ˈkrak verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English crakken, alteration (influenced by crak, n.) of craken, from Old English cracian; akin to Old English cearcian to creak, gnash, Old High German krahhōn to crack, Sanskrit garjati he roars, Old English cran crane — more at crane
intransitive verb
1. : to make a loud sharp sudden sound or series of such sounds (as the snap of a whip, a rifle shot) : give forth a report
wood cracking in a fire
his high yell of laughter cracked out when he thought of something funny — Virginia D. Dawson & Betty D. Wilson
2. : to snap asunder
the ropes cracked under pressure
: open in chinks
3.
a. chiefly Scotland : talk , chat , gossip
b. now dialect : to speak pompously : brag , boast
4. : to become ruined or impaired : fail: as
a. : to lose control or effectiveness especially when working or competing under pressure
his reserve cracked
any pitcher is liable to crack during a tight game
— often used with up
if he doesn't rest he'll crack up completely
b. : to fail in tone production : become discordant or harsh
his voice cracked
c. : to smash up a vehicle especially by losing control — used with up
he cracked up taking a curve
5.
a.
(1) : to go or travel at good speed
(2) archaic : to proceed under or as if under full sail or steam — used with on
b. : to move toward an objective : progress
get cracking
6.
a. of chemical compounds : to break up into simpler compounds usually as a result of heating : undergo pyrolysis
b. of an emulsion : break vi 7 f (2)
7. of hot syrup : to break when dropped into cold water and subjected to moderate pressure
transitive verb
1. : to break or burst: as
a. : to break (something brittle or hollow) with a sharp or explosive sound
crack a nut
b. : to break (anything hard or brittle) so that clefts, chinks, or fissures appear on the surface
the fall cracked the cup across the bottom
the storm broke a dozen windowpanes and cracked many others
2.
a. : to utter especially suddenly and sententiously : tell strikingly
crack a jest
crack a joke
b. : to cry up : extol , praise — used with up
the car wasn't all the dealer cracked it up to be
he cracked up Whitehead to the stars — H.J.Laski
3. : to strike with a sharp noise : slap , bang
crack a person over the head
4. : to put on (as full sail, steam, speed) : clap on — used with on
he liked everything about this convoy: he liked its air of purpose as it cracked on speed — Nicholas Monsarrat
5. : to break open or into: as
a. : to open (as a bottle) and usually drink
crack a fifth
b. : to puzzle out and solve, expose, or reveal the mystery of
crack an enemy code
crack a garbled message
crack a crime syndicate wide open
crack the logic of an argument
c. : to break into
crack a safe
specifically Britain : to break into (a house) — often used in the phrase crack a crib
d. : to open slightly
crack a door
crack a window
crack a throttle
crack a valve
e. : to enter or win recognition by (an exclusive profession, coterie, society)
it has been extremely difficult … for foreign artists … to crack the Parisian art front without going there to live — J.T.Soby
f. : to open (a book) for the purpose of study
crack a physics text
several students were up … cracking the books beyond midnight — Jack Edison
6. : violate , damage , destroy : as
a. : to impair often irreparably : wreck , ruin
crack a bat
crack an opponent's courage
— often used with up
crack a new car up
b. : to make (the voice) discordant or harsh : destroy the tone of
c. : disorder , craze
worry had cracked his otherwise expansive personality
d. : to interrupt (as a settled usage, condition, continuity, tradition) sharply or abruptly
his criticism cracked our complacency
7. : to cause to make a sharp noise
crack one's knuckles
8.
a.
(1) : to subject (hydrocarbon oils or gases) to cracking
(2) : to produce by cracking — usually used in past participle
cracked gasoline
b. : to break up (chemical compounds) into simpler compounds usually by means of heat : subject to pyrolysis
9.
a. in contract bridge : double
b. in poker : open
crack the pot
Synonyms: see break
•
- crack a smile
- crack the whip
- crack wise
II. noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English crak; akin to Old High German krach loud noise, Old English cracian, v.
1.
a. : a loud earsplitting roar or peal
a crack of thunder
the crack of trumpets
the crack of a cannon
— often used interjectionally
b. : a sudden sharp noise : a brief intense report : bang
the jug hit the floor with a terrible crack
the chair went over with a crack
the crack of a rifle
— often used interjectionally
crack ! went the whip
c. : the breaking or broken tone of the voice (as when changed at puberty)
2.
a. now dialect Britain : boasting or an instance of boasting
b. chiefly dialect Britain
(1) : talk , conversation , gossip
(2) : tale , story , joke
(3) cracks plural : news
c. : a sharp, cutting, or sarcastically witty remark : quip
Washington was not famous for saying funny things but sometimes he got off a crack that was widely appreciated — Roger Butterfield
3.
a. : a narrow break or thin slit (as in or across a surface) sometimes caused by incomplete joining, drying, or setting, by strain or decay, or by a blow or fall not sufficiently violent to cause a complete break : fissure
a windowpane full of cracks
trip over a crack in the ice
b. : a narrow opening
you can leave the outer door open a crack so you can hear if anyone comes — John Steinbeck
c. : an open crosswise streak in woven fabrics
4.
a. : a weakness or flaw caused by decay, age, or deficiency : unsoundness
a crack in a person's mind
little rifts and cracks … in the whole bland, ecclesiastical facade of Victorian England — C.D.Lewis
b. : a crazy or erratic person : crackpot
the cracks who … interest themselves … in every sensational murder case — D.L.Champion
5. obsolete : a roguish boy : wag
6. slang Britain : a thing or person of superior excellence or ability
Australia sent a couple of cracks to defend the trophy
7. archaic : prostitute
8. : moment , instant
I'll be there in a crack
at the crack of dawn
9.
a. archaic : burglar
b. : housebreaking , burglary
a successful crack
10. : a sharp resounding blow
a crack on the head
11. : a single effort or attempt
get rid of a job at one crack
he said he didn't know how to swim but would take a crack at it
12. : the stage at which syrup from boiling sugar breaks with a snap when chilled by being dripped from a spoon or dropped into water
13. : a poultry egg with a noticeably cracked shell but with unbroken membrane — contrasted with check
Synonyms:
fissure , crevice , chink , cleft , cranny : crack is likely to indicate a line of breaking or splitting in a continuing surface with or without perceptible separation into an opening that resembles a slit
a crack in a pane of glass
cracks in the parched mud
fissure usually indicates a narrow opening of some depth as a result of some rending or breaking force
a fissure in the stone floor, like a crack in china, which was plastered up with clay — Willa Cather
crevice indicates an opening like a fissure but less strongly suggests forceful recent cleavage and may lend itself to use in situations involving accumulation, deposit, growth, or concealment within
the cross formed by snow in the crevices of the rock
intolerance can always find some crevice in the administration of the law — Zechariah Chafee
chink suggests a space or hole, often a slit, permitting one to see through or to utilize in escape, evasion, or deft attack
I felt as if I had slipped through some chink in the veil of the past and become a medieval student — John Buchan
Republicans … had independently been studying the Truman armor for new chinks — Atlantic
cleft suggests a V-shaped indention, as though made with a splitting wedge, in some formation
Dover, an English seaport … occupies a wide cleft in the chalk hills formed by the valley of the river Don — Chambers's Encyc.
cranny suggests a slit, niche, or recess, often one in a wall or enclosed structure and often small and easy to overlook
they explored every nook and cranny of the West, seeking out passes through mountain barriers — R.A.Billington
Synonym: see in addition joke .
III. adjective
Etymology: crack (II) (something excellent)
: of superior excellence or ability
a crack ship
a crack tennis player
a crack regiment
crack maintenance and cargo specialists — B.M.Bowie
IV. noun
Usage: often attributive
: a purified potent form of cocaine that is obtained by treating cocaine hydrochloride with sodium bicarbonate to create small chips used illicitly usually for smoking
crack cocaine