Background for crabs

crabs

/kɹæbz/

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noun

A crustacean of the infraorder Brachyura, having five pairs of legs, the foremost of which are in the form of claws, and a carapace.

Examples :

"We saw many crabs scuttling sideways on the beach, their claws snapping at the sand. "

animal biology ocean food

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noun

The meat of this crustacean, served as food; crabmeat

Examples :

"We had crabs for dinner last night, and they were delicious. "

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noun

A bad-tempered person.

Examples :

"My boss is such a crab; he's always grumpy and critical. "

character person attitude

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noun

(in plural crabs) An infestation of pubic lice (Pthirus pubis).

Examples :

"Although crabs themselves are an easily treated inconvenience, the patient and his partner(s) clearly run major STD risks."

medicine disease insect biology organism body sex human

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noun

A playing card with the rank of three.

Examples :

""He had a pair of crabs, making his hand weak for the poker game." "

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noun

A position in rowing where the oar is pushed under the rigger by the force of the water.

Examples :

"The novice rower caught crabs three times during his first practice, struggling to keep his oar from being forced under the boat. "

sport nautical sailing

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noun

A defect in an outwardly normal object that may render it inconvenient and troublesome to use.

Examples :

"The software had a few crabs – small bugs that made printing documents difficult. "

technical device machine quality

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noun

An unsold book that is returned to the publisher.

Examples :

"After poor sales, the bookstore shipped a box of crabs back to the publisher. "

business literature

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verb

To fish for crabs.

Examples :

"My family loves to crabs on the weekends at the bay. "

fish animal food nautical ocean

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verb

Examples :

""His negativity always crabs my mood." "

negative action

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verb

Examples :

""My little brother always crabs when I ask him to do chores." "

attitude emotion character

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verb

To drift or move sideways or to leeward (by analogy with the movement of a crab).

Examples :

"The small boat crabbed down the river, fighting the current and wind, making it difficult to steer a straight course. "

nautical sailing direction

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verb

To navigate (an aircraft, e.g. a glider) sideways against an air current in order to maintain a straight-line course.

Examples :

"The pilot had to crabs the small plane into the wind to stay on course and land safely on the short runway. "

technical vehicle nautical sailing

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verb

To move (a camera) sideways.

Examples :

"The director told the camera operator to crabs left slowly to follow the actor as he walked across the stage. "

media technology communication

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verb

(World War I), to fly slightly off the straight-line course towards an enemy aircraft, as the machine guns on early aircraft did not allow firing through the propeller disk.

Examples :

"During the aerial dogfight, the pilot had to crabs slightly to the left to get a clear shot at the enemy's plane with his wing-mounted machine gun, since his guns couldn't fire through the propeller. "

military war vehicle machine action history technical

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verb

To back out of something.

Examples :

""He said he'd help me move furniture, but he crabbed out at the last minute." "

attitude action

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noun

The crab apple or wild apple.

Examples :

"My grandmother's garden has a beautiful crab tree, loaded with delicious crab apples. "

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noun

The tree bearing crab apples, which has a dogbane-like bitter bark with medical use.

Examples :

"The herbalist carefully harvested bark from the crabs in the orchard, knowing its bitter properties could be used to treat skin ailments. "

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noun

A cudgel made of the wood of the crab tree; a crabstick.

Examples :

"The old farmer kept a pair of crabs leaning against the barn door, useful for prodding livestock and warding off stray dogs. "

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noun

A movable winch or windlass with powerful gearing, used with derricks, etc.

Examples :

"The construction workers used the large crabs to lift the heavy beams onto the building. "

technical machine

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noun

A form of windlass, or geared capstan, for hauling ships into dock, etc.

Examples :

"The shipyard used crabs to carefully pull the massive tanker into the dry dock for repairs. "

nautical sailing machine

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noun

A machine used in ropewalks to stretch the yarn.

Examples :

"At the old rope factory, the crabs stretched the spun hemp yarn taut before it was laid into rope. "

machine industry

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noun

A claw for anchoring a portable machine.

Examples :

"The photographer used crabs to secure his lighting equipment to the metal scaffolding. "

machine technical item

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verb

(obsolete) To irritate, make surly or sour

Examples :

"The constant criticism began to crabs him, making him withdrawn and irritable. "

attitude character mind emotion

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verb

To be ill-tempered; to complain or find fault.

Examples :

"My little brother always crabs when he has to do his homework. "

attitude character emotion

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verb

(British dialect) To cudgel or beat, as with a crabstick

Examples :

"The bully threatened to crabs anyone who tattled on him to the teacher. "

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noun

The tree species Carapa guianensis, native to South America.

Examples :

"The furniture maker chose to use wood from the crabs tree, known for its rich color and durability, to build the new table. "

plant nature biology agriculture material science environment

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noun

Short for carabiner.

Examples :

"I need to attach my water bottle to my backpack using the small crabs. "