crutchn.

Brit.

/krʌtʃ/, U.S.

/krətʃ/

Forms: Old English crycc(e, Middle English crucche ( ü), Middle English–1500s cruche, crutche, 1600s– crutch; β. 1500s crooch(e, 1500s– crotch; γ. Middle English–1500s crouche, crowch(e, 1500s croutch, 1500s–1600s crouch.

Etymology: Old English crycc, (accusative crycce) feminine, a common Germanic word = *Old Low German krukkja (whence Middle Dutch crucke, Dutch kruk, Middle Low German krucke, krocke, Low German krukke, krück), Old High German chruckja, chrucha (Middle High German kruche, krucke, German krücke), Old Norse krykkja (Norwegian krykkja, Old Swedish krykkia, Danish krykke) < Germanic krukjâ-, krukjôn- < ablaut stem kruk- of kreuk- to bend. The Middle English change of y/y/ to ŭ, is found also in clutch, much, trust. The phonology of the variants is obscure. For the crotch form, compare crotch n., as a separate word. Cruche may be merely a variant spelling, but it also occurs as a variant of croche n.¹ Crooch(e) may belong to crotch or to crouch : the latter was perhaps influenced in form by crouch v.¹, but it may represent an early lengthening of the u in cruche, crucche, with later diphthongization.

a. A staff for a lame or infirm person to lean upon in walking; now a staff with a cross-piece at the top to fit under the armpit (usually a pair of crutches).

ΘΚΠ

the world > health and disease > healing > medical appliances or equipment > surgical supports > [noun] > crutch

crutchc900

crosec1330

stiltc1330

potent1348

croche14..

staff1483

potencea1500

crutchet1611

plyer1699

the world > action or operation > easiness > aid, help, or assistance > support > [noun] > that which or one who supports

crutchc900

upholda1066

uptakinga1300

arma1382

postc1387

staff1390

sustainerc1390

undersetterc1400

potent?a1439

buttressa1450

supportalc1450

comfort1455

supporta1456

studa1500

poge1525

underpropper1532

shore1534

staya1542

prop1562

stoopa1572

underprop1579

sustentation1585

rest1590

underpinning1590

supportance1597

sustinent1603

lean1610

reliance1613

hingea1616

columna1620

spar1630

gable end1788

lifeboat1832

standback1915

c900 tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (1891) iv. xxx[i]. 380 Mid his crycce hine wreðigende.

c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) l. 9721 Vðer þe lome mon..he wænde mid his crucche us a-dun þrucche.

c1430 Hymns Virg. (1867) 81 Þan wole no þing us availe but oure bedis and our crucche [rhyme myche].

c1440 Sir Gowther 673 We make..Crokyd here cruches for-sake.

1570 P. Levens Manipulus Vocabulorum sig. Pii/2 A Crutche, grallus.

1600 W. Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing ii. i. 334 Time goes on crutches, til Loue haue all his rites.

1684 J. Bunyan Pilgrim's Progress 2nd Pt. ii. 161 He could not Dance without one Crutch in his Hand.

1709 J. Addison Tatler No. 103. ⁋11 I..gave him a new Pair of Crutches.

1805 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 14 30 He could walk with great ease, and without crutches.

1866 R. M. Ballantyne Shifting Winds xvi. 165 He walked with a crutch.

β. 1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 211/1 Crotche for a lame man, potence.1573 T. Tusser Fiue Hundreth Points Good Husbandry (new ed.) f. 56^v Mans age deuided, here ye haue..The next [vij. yere: 70–77], get chayer & crotchis to stay.γ. c1440 York Myst. xxv. 376 My man, ryse and caste þe cruchys gode space.c1440 York Myst. xxv. 380 Lorde! lo, my crouchis whare þei flee.1582 A. Munday Eng. Romayne Lyfe sig. H2^v Some of them, [had] bound vp their legs, & went on Croutches.1599 W. Shakespeare Romeo & Juliet i. i. 73 A crowch [1623 crutch], a crowch, why call you for a sword? 1611 J. Florio Queen Anna's New World of Words Grúccia..a lame mans crouch or crutchet.

b. transferred as the symbol of old age.

ΚΠ

1594 T. Lodge & R. Greene Looking Glasse sig. B^v From Cradle to the Cruch.

1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost iv. iii. 243 And giues the Crutch the Cradles infancie.

c. figurative. A prop, a support.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > easiness > aid, help, or assistance > support > [noun] > mental or spiritual

supportationa1500

support?a1513

crutch1581

nutriment1597

sustentationa1617

1602 J. Marston Antonios Reuenge Prol. sig. A2^v Your fauour will giue crutches to our faults.

1609 W. Shakespeare Troilus & Cressida v. iii. 63 Hold him fast, He is thy crutch .

1728 E. Young Love of Fame iv, in Wks. (1757) I. 115 Who'd be a crutch to prop a rotten peer.

1865 E. B. Tylor Res. Early Hist. Mankind v. 99 The Egyptians were later..in throwing off the crutches of picture signs.

β. 1581 J. Bell tr. W. Haddon & J. Foxe Against Jerome Osorius 130 Of what force therfore can this your wyndeshaken crooche be..whereupon your lame cripled workes do rest?1581 J. Bell tr. W. Haddon & J. Foxe Against Jerome Osorius 230 Osorius underproppeth his Freewill here, with this crooch.γ. 1625 N. Carpenter Geogr. Delineated i. iii. 54 This opinion is very feeble, and cannot goe without crouches.1661 S. Morgan Sphere of Gentry ii. vii. 73 He is Potent Counterpotent by the Crouches of providence.

2. A support or prop, with a forked or concave top, for various uses: cf. crotch n. 3.

ΘΚΠ

the world > space > relative position > support > [noun] > that which supports > prop > forked

crotch1573

crotchet1631

crutch1645

1645 Enchirid. Fortif. 52 The crutches, or forks, against which the arms of each company are set.

1670 J. Eachard Grounds Contempt of Clergy 91 Though his house stands not upon crutches.

a1701 H. Maundrell Journey Aleppo to Jerusalem (1703) 28 On each hand of every seat were placed crutches..for the Priest to lean upon.

1784 J. King Cook's Voy. Pacific III. vi. v. 305 The hunters next fix in the ground the crutches, upon which their firelocks are made to rest.

1892 S. R. Gardiner Student's Hist. Eng. 527 Soldier with musket and crutch: from a broadside printed about 1630.

3. Of a saddle:

†a. Formerly, the raised part in front and at the back of the saddle. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > keeping or management of horses > horse-gear > [noun] > saddle > parts of saddle

saddle-boweOE

arsonc1300

saddle skirt1361

saddle-tree1364

skirtc1400

saddle panel1465

stock-tree1470

stock1497

pommela1500

tree1535

pillion cloth1540

port1548

saddle stock1548

pilch1552

bolster1591

cantle1591

shank-pilliona1599

pillowc1600

pad1604

crutch1607

sivet1607

saddle crutcha1614

saddle eaves1663

saddle tore1681

burr1688

head1688

narve1688

saddle seat1688

sidebar1688

torea1694

quarter1735

bands of a saddle1753

witherband1764

withers1764

peak1775

pillion-stick1784

boot-housing1792

saddle flap1798

saddle lap1803

fork1833

flap1849

horn1849

skirting1852

hunting-horn1854

head-plate1855

saddle horn1856

cantle bar1859

leaping-horn1859

straining1871

stirrup-bar1875

straining-leather1875

spring tree1877

leaping-head1881

officer-tree1894

monkey1911

monkey-strap1915

thigh roll1963

straining-web-

1607 G. Markham Cavelarice iv. 46 The garthweb which holdes vppe his Trammels behinde the hinder croutch of his Saddle.

a1666 R. Blair Life (1848) (modernized text) vii. 93 I was forced to stoop and lie on the very curche of the saddle.

1689 in J. Raine Depos. Castle of York (1861) 290 And..he could not hold up his head, but it hung below the sadle crutch on the farr side.

b. In modern use: The front of the tree which is made to fork down on each side of the shoulder, and which supports the pommel. Also a forked rest for the leg in a side-saddle.

ΚΠ

1874 in E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech.

4. Nautical.

a. Applied to various contrivances of a forked shape in a ship or boat, e.g. a forked support (of wood or iron) for a boom, mast, spar, etc., when not in use (also called crotch); a forked rowlock.

ΘΚΠ

society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > equipment of vessel > other equipment of vessel > [noun] > supports for netting, for unused sails or spars

roof-tree1336

crutch1769

mitch-board1883

1769 W. Falconer Universal Dict. Marine Transl. French Terms Chandeliers de chaloupe, the crutches of a boat, which sustain the main-boom, or the mast and sail, when they are lowered.

1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Iliad in Iliad & Odyssey I. i. 537 Lowering swift the mast Into its crutch.

1825 H. B. Gascoigne Path to Naval Fame 58 The Spanker-Boom then to the Crutch they bear.

1869 F. W. Bennett Leaves from Log 127 One of the men in beaching her lost his brass crutch (rowlock) overboard.

β. 1769 W. Falconer Universal Dict. Marine Crotches..are fixed in different places of the ship..to support the spare-masts, yards, &c.1799 Naval Chron. 2 238 A bolt must be fixed in each crotch.1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher Sailor's Word-bk. Crutch or crotch..stanchions of wood or iron, whose upper parts are forked to receive masts, yards, and other spars, and which are fixed along the sides of gang ways. Crutches are used instead of rowlocks.

b. Crooked timbers (or iron bands replacing them) fitted horizontally inside a vessel at the after end, and bolted to the stern post and the vessel's sides, to give additional strength to the connection of these parts. They correspond to the breast-hooks at the fore-end.

ΘΚΠ

society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > parts of vessels > body of vessel > rear part of vessel > [noun] > parts supporting stern-post

crutch1769

heel knee1830

stern-knee1846

sternson1846

sternson-knee1849

clutch1850

oxter-plate1884

1769 W. Falconer Universal Dict. Marine Crotches, a name given to those crooked timbers that are placed upon the keel..upon which the frame of her hull grows narrower below, as it approaches the stem afore, and the stern post abaft.

c1860 H. Stuart Novices or Young Seaman's Catech. (rev. ed.) 68 What are the crutches?.. Iron bands which unite the sides of the ship at the stern.

5. In a clock: The fork at the end of the arm which depends from the axis of the anchor-escapement, and receives the pendulum rod between its arms.

ΘΚΠ

the world > time > instruments for measuring time > clock > [noun] > part(s) of

nut1428

peise1428

plumbc1450

Jack1498

clockwork1516

larum1542

Jack of the clockhouse1563

watch-wheel1568

work1570

plummeta1578

Jack of the clock1581

snail-cam1591

snail-work1591

pointer1596

quarter jack1604

mainspring1605

winder1606

notch-wheel1611

fusee1622

count-wheel1647

jack-wheel1647

frame1658

arbor1659

balance1660

fuse1674

hour-figure1675

stop1675

pallet1676

regulator1676

cock1678

movement1678

detent1688

savage1690

clock1696

pinwheel1696

starred wheel1696

swing-wheel1696

warning-wheel1696

watch1696

watch-part1696

hoop-wheel1704

hour-wheel1704

snail1714

step-wheel1714

tide-work1739

train1751

crutch1753

cannon pinion1764

rising board1769

remontoire1774

escapement1779

clock jack1784

locking plate1786

scapement1789

motion work1795

anchor escapement1798

scape1798

star-wheel1798

recoil escapement1800

recoiling pallet1801

recoiling scapement1801

cannon1802

hammer-tail1805

recoiling escapement1805

bottle jack1810

renovating spring1812

quarter-boy1815

pin tooth1817

solar wheel1819

impulse-teeth1825

pendulum wheel1825

pallet arbor1826

rewinder1826

rack hook1829

snail-wheel1831

quarter bell1832

tow1834

star pulley1836

watch train1838

clock train1843

raising-piece1843

wheelwork1843

gravity escapement1850

jumper1850

vertical escapement1850

time train1853

pin pallet1860

spade1862

dead well1867

stop-work1869

ringer1873

strike-or-silent1875

warning-piece1875

guard-pin1879

pendulum cock1881

warning-lever1881

beat-pin1883

fusee-piece1884

fusee-snail1884

shutter1884

tourbillion1884

tumbler1884

virgule1884

foliot1899

grasshopper1899

grasshopper escapement1899

trunk1899

pin lever1908

clock spring1933

1753 J. Ellicott in Philos. Trans. 1751–2 (Royal Soc.) 47 490 The pendulum is moved by a piece of steel (call'd the crutch) rivited to one end of the arbor.

1874 E. H. Knight Amer. Mech. Dict. I. 654/1 The pendulum-rod is contained within the limbs of the crutch.

a. A handle consisting of a crossbar like the head of a crutch.

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > equipment > tool > parts of tools generally > [noun] > handle > of other shapes

handstaff1440

brace1592

potent1688

crutch1831

grip-lug1891

baluster handle1956

pistol grip1972

1831 J. Holland Treat. Manuf. Metal I. 141 The shafts [of the spade, with]..the crutch or open handle, according to preference.

1874 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. Crutch..5. (Founding.) The cross-handle on the end of a shank (a founder's metal-ladle), by which it is tipped.

b. Chiefly Australian and New Zealand. (See quot. 1965.)

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > sheep-farming > [noun] > sheep washing or dipping > instrument for pushing sheep under in dip

crutch1916

1916 Jrnl. Agric. (N.Z.) 20 Sept. 228 It is necessary to hold each lot of sheep in the bath for the time necessary to secure thorough immersion. This may be done..by the use of the crutch.

1953 B. Stronach Musterer on Molesworth viii. 55 We had two men on the ‘crutch’ pushing the sheep's heads under, and seven men at the race.

1965 J. S. Gunn Terminol. Shearing Industry i. 18 Crutch, a mallet-shaped instrument (like a crutch) used to push sheep under in a swimming dip. Improved dips, especially spray dips, have caused this tool to become obsolete.

7. Soap-boiling. A staff with a perforated piece of wood or iron at the end, used to stir the ingredients.

ΚΠ

1837 N. Whittock et al. Compl. Bk. Trades (1842) 409 A rotatory motion is given the crutch.

Thesaurus »

Categories »

a. The ‘fork’ of the human body: see crotch n. 5.

b. the angle between the two flukes of a whale's flapper or tail-fin.

ΚΠ

1748 F. Smith Voy. Discov. N.W. Passage 163 The Stockings reach up to the Crutch.

1771 B. Franklin Autobiogr. (1881) I. 140 I clapped my hand under his crutch, and..pitched him head-foremost into the river.

1842 F. D. Bennett Narr. Whaling Voy. II. 156 The tail-fin, or ‘flukes’..each half overlaps the other at the central notch, or ‘crutch’.

1844 Queen's Regulations & Orders Army 154 The Fly to extend from top to within 3½ inches above point of Crutch.

Compounds

C1. General attributive.

crutch-like adj.

C2.

crutch-boots n. tall sea boots.

ΘΚΠ

the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > footwear > shoe or boot > boot > [noun] > for specific purpose > for wear at sea

clumpera1825

crutch-boots1889

1889 P. H. Emerson Eng. Idyls 118 I went down in the cabin, and pulled off my crutch-boots.

crutch-cane n. see crutch-stick n.

ΘΚΠ

the world > space > relative position > support > [noun] > that which supports > something to lean on > staff to lean on > cane

wand1548

cane1590

rattan1657

Japan1678

whangee1776

rattan stick1812

Malacca cane1844

crutch-cane1846

dragon cane1851

Malacca1871

1846 E. Bulwer-Lytton Lucretia I. i. i. 17 With a gold headed crutch-cane.

crutch-handled adj. having a transverse handle like the head of a crutch.

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > equipment > tool > parts of tools generally > [adjective] > handle or stock > of specific shape or size > provided with

crutched1706

crutch-headed1767

cross-handled1801

crutch-handled1864

1864 W. H. Ainsworth John Law I. Prol. iii. 42 He carried a crutch-handled cane.

crutch-headed adj.

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > equipment > tool > parts of tools generally > [adjective] > handle or stock > of specific shape or size > provided with

crutched1706

crutch-headed1767

cross-handled1801

crutch-handled1864

1767 Babler I. 113 I..threw by my crutch headed stick.

crutch-hole n. a hole to receive a crutch or movable rowlock.

ΘΚΠ

society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > equipment of vessel > rowing apparatus > [noun] > rowlock > socket for movable

crutch-hole1874

1874 F. G. D. Bedford Sailor's Pocket Bk. vi. 185 Boats..fitted with a crutch hole on each quarter where an oar could be worked to assist the rudder.

crutch-palsy n. paralysis of the arm caused by the pressure of a crutch.

crutch-pin n. the pin of a pendulum crutch.

ΚΠ

1772 F. Wollaston in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 63 77 The bottom of the stem, instead of receiving the crutch-pin, is turned sideways.

crutch-stick n. a crutch-handled stick.

ΘΚΠ

the world > space > relative position > support > [noun] > that which supports > something to lean on > staff to lean on > other types of walking stick

pikeOE

bourdona1300

pickc1330

pickstaff1356

pikestaff?a1500

gribble1578

supplejack1748

crutch-stick1780

spear-stick1801

kebbie1816

Penang lawyer1827

alpenstock1829

thumb-stick1945

1780 in W. Hone Every-day Bk. (1827) II. 1478 Walks with a short crutch stick with an ivory head.

crutch-tail n. see crotch-tail n. at crotch n. Compounds.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1893; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

crutchv.¹

Brit.

/krʌtʃ/, U.S.

/krətʃ/

Etymology: < crutch n.

a. transitive. To support as with a crutch or crutches, to prop.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > easiness > aid, help, or assistance > support > [verb (transitive)] > support with a prop

underprop1532

crutch1682

1682 N. Tate & J. Dryden 2nd Pt. Absalom & Achitophel 13 Two Fools that Crutch their Feeble sense on Verse.

1833 I. D'Israeli in New Monthly Mag. 37 432 The genius of Moliere..in its first attempts..did not move alone; it was crutched by imitation.

1890 Caine in Pall Mall Gaz. 28 June 5/2 This sickly Government, crutched by Lord Hartington and Mr. Chamberlain.

b. with up: To prop up, sustain.

ΘΚΠ

the world > space > relative position > support > [verb (transitive)] > prop

shore1340

undershore1393

prop1507

underpropa1535

crutch1641

rance1680

trig1711

spur1733

stut1808

spurn1865

scaffold1884

the world > action or operation > easiness > aid, help, or assistance > support > [verb (transitive)]

lasteOE

i-hentc1225

uphold?c1225

upbeara1300

sustainc1300

understand13..

uplift1338

maintainc1350

supporta1393

underset1395

buttressc1400

supprise1447

bolster1508

stay1526

undershore?a1534

underpropa1535

to hold up by the chin1546

back1548

suborn1548

suffult?c1550

upshore?1567

shoulder1577

upstay1600

underwrite1609

abone1622

crutch1641

float1823

backstop1956

1641 R. Carpenter Experience, Hist., & Divinitie ii. viii. 193 Howsoever they crutch it up handsomly.

1816 W. Scott Old Mortality Concl., in Tales of my Landlord 1st Ser. IV. 339 A history, growing already vapid, is but dully crutched up by a detail of circumstances which every reader must have anticipated.

1861 G. W. Thornbury Life J. M. W. Turner I. 106 Old crippled buildings..crutched up with posts and logs.

2. intransitive. To go on crutches, to limp. (Also, to crutch it.)

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > progressive motion > walking > walk, tread, or step [verb (intransitive)] > limp

haltc825

cripplec1220

hip1440

limp1570

linch1570

claudicate1623

hop1700

crimple1754

hilch1786

crutch1828

hamble1828

dot1843

peg-leg1969

1828 J. Wilson in Blackwood's Mag. 23 810 Up and down..the various steps..do we delight to crutch it.

1847 Tait's Edinb. Mag. 14 291 The most apparent ‘dodge’ on which a statesman ever ‘crutched’ round a corner.

3. transitive. Soap-boiling. To stir with a crutch.

ΚΠ

1837 N. Whittock et al. Compl. Bk. Trades (1842) 410 What the new crutching wheels..will cost..we have no present means of stating.

4. To push (a sheep) into a dip with a crutch (see crutch n. 6b). Chiefly Australian and New Zealand.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > sheep-farming > rear sheep or wool [verb (transitive)] > dip

river1531

to dip sheep1840

crutch1886

1886 C. Scott Pract. Sheep-farming 135 The hot water tank into which the sheep are put next morning has three divisions, in each of which they are well crutched.

1940 E. C. Studholme Te Waimate (1954) xiii. 117 One day whilst trying to ‘crutch’ (push under) some slippery-backed old ewe..Geoffrey fell in.

5. To cut off the wool or hair from the hind-quarters of (a sheep, dog, etc.). Chiefly Australian and New Zealand.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > sheep-farming > sheep-shearing > shear sheep [verb (transitive)] > manner, technique, or part

beard1429

belt?1523

feazea1642

shirl1688

dag1706

tag1707

clat1838

tomahawk1859

rough1878

to open up1886

pink1897

crutch1915

barrow1933

slum1965

1915 J. R. Macdonald N.Z. Sheepfarming xxv. 68 If crutching is followed, any wool that might hinder the lambs from sucking may be clipped.

1920 N.Z. Jrnl. Agric. 20 July 8 The keeping-lambs are crutched, branded, dipped, and placed out.

1942 R. B. Kelley Animal Breeding vii. 76 We find it advantageous also to ‘crutch’ long-coated bitches.

1946 F. D. Davison Dusty vi. 65 Blowfly season was drawing near. Morrison and Tom were crutching the sheep, cutting away the soiled wool from under their tails, where they would be most likely to be blown.

Derivatives

ˈcrutching n.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > sheep-farming > [noun] > sheep washing or dipping

sheep-wash749

rivering1532

sheepwashing1826

crutching1837

sheep-dipping1852

jetting1941

the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > sheep-farming > sheep-shearing > [noun] > partial shearing

bearding1484

crutching1837

clatting1844

tagginga1890

barrowing1949

1837 [see sense 3]. 1915 [see sense 5].

1933 L. G. D. Acland in Press (Christchurch, N.Z.) 7 Oct. 15/7 When sheep are dipped, they are shoved under with a thing like an inverted crutch. This is called crutching.

1941 Nature 5 Apr. 421/2 ‘Crutching’..consists of shearing the wool away from the area around the tail so that this part keeps clean.

1953 O. E. Middleton in C. K. Stead N.Z. Short Stories (1966) 2nd Ser. 189 But aside from shearing and crutching times, life was good at the station.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1893; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	crutch
释义	crutchn. Brit. /krʌtʃ/, U.S. /krətʃ/ Forms: Old English crycc(e, Middle English crucche ( ü), Middle English–1500s cruche, crutche, 1600s– crutch; β. 1500s crooch(e, 1500s– crotch; γ. Middle English–1500s crouche, crowch(e, 1500s croutch, 1500s–1600s crouch. Etymology: Old English crycc, (accusative crycce) feminine, a common Germanic word = Old Low German krukkja* (whence Middle Dutch crucke, Dutch kruk, Middle Low German krucke, krocke, Low German krukke, krück), Old High German chruckja, chrucha (Middle High German kruche, krucke, German krücke), Old Norse krykkja (Norwegian krykkja, Old Swedish krykkia, Danish krykke) < Germanic krukjâ-, krukjôn- < ablaut stem kruk- of kreuk- to bend. The Middle English change of y/y/ to ŭ, is found also in clutch, much, trust. The phonology of the variants is obscure. For the crotch form, compare crotch n., as a separate word. Cruche may be merely a variant spelling, but it also occurs as a variant of croche n.¹ Crooch(e) may belong to crotch or to crouch : the latter was perhaps influenced in form by crouch v.¹, but it may represent an early lengthening of the u in cruche, crucche, with later diphthongization. 1. a. A staff for a lame or infirm person to lean upon in walking; now a staff with a cross-piece at the top to fit under the armpit (usually a pair of crutches). ΘΚΠ the world > health and disease > healing > medical appliances or equipment > surgical supports > [noun] > crutch crutchc900 crosec1330 stiltc1330 potent1348 croche14.. staff1483 staff1483 potencea1500 crutchet1611 plyer1699 the world > action or operation > easiness > aid, help, or assistance > support > [noun] > that which or one who supports crutchc900 upholda1066 uptakinga1300 arma1382 postc1387 staff1390 sustainerc1390 undersetterc1400 potent?a1439 buttressa1450 supportalc1450 comfort1455 supporta1456 studa1500 poge1525 underpropper1532 shore1534 staya1542 prop1562 stoopa1572 underprop1579 sustentation1585 rest1590 underpinning1590 supportance1597 sustinent1603 lean1610 reliance1613 hingea1616 columna1620 spar1630 gable end1788 lifeboat1832 standback1915 c900 tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (1891) iv. xxx[i]. 380 Mid his crycce hine wreðigende. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) l. 9721 Vðer þe lome mon..he wænde mid his crucche us a-dun þrucche. c1430 Hymns Virg. (1867) 81 Þan wole no þing us availe but oure bedis and our crucche [rhyme myche]. c1440 Sir Gowther 673 We make..Crokyd here cruches for-sake. 1570 P. Levens Manipulus Vocabulorum sig. Pii/2 A Crutche, grallus. 1600 W. Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing ii. i. 334 Time goes on crutches, til Loue haue all his rites. View more context for this quotation 1684 J. Bunyan Pilgrim's Progress 2nd Pt. ii. 161 He could not Dance without one Crutch in his Hand. View more context for this quotation 1709 J. Addison Tatler No. 103. ⁋11 I..gave him a new Pair of Crutches. 1805 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 14 30 He could walk with great ease, and without crutches. 1866 R. M. Ballantyne Shifting Winds xvi. 165 He walked with a crutch. β. 1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 211/1 Crotche for a lame man, potence.1573 T. Tusser Fiue Hundreth Points Good Husbandry (new ed.) f. 56^v Mans age deuided, here ye haue..The next [vij. yere: 70–77], get chayer & crotchis to stay.γ. c1440 York Myst. xxv. 376 My man, ryse and caste þe cruchys gode space.c1440 York Myst. xxv. 380 Lorde! lo, my crouchis whare þei flee.1582 A. Munday Eng. Romayne Lyfe sig. H2^v Some of them, [had] bound vp their legs, & went on Croutches.1599 W. Shakespeare Romeo & Juliet i. i. 73 A crowch [1623 crutch], a crowch, why call you for a sword? View more context for this quotation1611 J. Florio Queen Anna's New World of Words Grúccia..a lame mans crouch or crutchet. b. transferred as the symbol of old age. ΚΠ 1594 T. Lodge & R. Greene Looking Glasse sig. B^v From Cradle to the Cruch. 1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost iv. iii. 243 And giues the Crutch the Cradles infancie. View more context for this quotation c. figurative. A prop, a support. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > easiness > aid, help, or assistance > support > [noun] > mental or spiritual supportationa1500 support?a1513 crutch1581 nutriment1597 sustentationa1617 1602 J. Marston Antonios Reuenge Prol. sig. A2^v Your fauour will giue crutches to our faults. 1609 W. Shakespeare Troilus & Cressida v. iii. 63 Hold him fast, He is thy crutch . View more context for this quotation 1728 E. Young Love of Fame iv, in Wks. (1757) I. 115 Who'd be a crutch to prop a rotten peer. 1865 E. B. Tylor Res. Early Hist. Mankind v. 99 The Egyptians were later..in throwing off the crutches of picture signs. β. 1581 J. Bell tr. W. Haddon & J. Foxe Against Jerome Osorius 130 Of what force therfore can this your wyndeshaken crooche be..whereupon your lame cripled workes do rest?1581 J. Bell tr. W. Haddon & J. Foxe Against Jerome Osorius 230 Osorius underproppeth his Freewill here, with this crooch.γ. 1625 N. Carpenter Geogr. Delineated i. iii. 54 This opinion is very feeble, and cannot goe without crouches.1661 S. Morgan Sphere of Gentry ii. vii. 73 He is Potent Counterpotent by the Crouches of providence. 2. A support or prop, with a forked or concave top, for various uses: cf. crotch n. 3. ΘΚΠ the world > space > relative position > support > [noun] > that which supports > prop > forked crotch1573 crotchet1631 crutch1645 1645 Enchirid. Fortif. 52 The crutches, or forks, against which the arms of each company are set. 1670 J. Eachard Grounds Contempt of Clergy 91 Though his house stands not upon crutches. a1701 H. Maundrell Journey Aleppo to Jerusalem (1703) 28 On each hand of every seat were placed crutches..for the Priest to lean upon. 1784 J. King Cook's Voy. Pacific III. vi. v. 305 The hunters next fix in the ground the crutches, upon which their firelocks are made to rest. 1892 S. R. Gardiner Student's Hist. Eng. 527 Soldier with musket and crutch: from a broadside printed about 1630. 3. Of a saddle: †a. Formerly, the raised part in front and at the back of the saddle. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > keeping or management of horses > horse-gear > [noun] > saddle > parts of saddle saddle-boweOE arsonc1300 saddle skirt1361 saddle-tree1364 skirtc1400 saddle panel1465 stock-tree1470 stock1497 pommela1500 tree1535 pillion cloth1540 port1548 saddle stock1548 pilch1552 bolster1591 cantle1591 shank-pilliona1599 pillowc1600 pad1604 crutch1607 sivet1607 saddle crutcha1614 saddle eaves1663 saddle tore1681 burr1688 head1688 narve1688 saddle seat1688 sidebar1688 torea1694 quarter1735 bands of a saddle1753 witherband1764 withers1764 peak1775 pillion-stick1784 boot-housing1792 saddle flap1798 saddle lap1803 fork1833 flap1849 horn1849 skirting1852 hunting-horn1854 head-plate1855 saddle horn1856 cantle bar1859 leaping-horn1859 straining1871 stirrup-bar1875 straining-leather1875 spring tree1877 leaping-head1881 officer-tree1894 monkey1911 monkey-strap1915 thigh roll1963 straining-web- 1607 G. Markham Cavelarice iv. 46 The garthweb which holdes vppe his Trammels behinde the hinder croutch of his Saddle. a1666 R. Blair Life (1848) (modernized text) vii. 93 I was forced to stoop and lie on the very curche of the saddle. 1689 in J. Raine Depos. Castle of York (1861) 290 And..he could not hold up his head, but it hung below the sadle crutch on the farr side. b. In modern use: The front of the tree which is made to fork down on each side of the shoulder, and which supports the pommel. Also a forked rest for the leg in a side-saddle. ΚΠ 1874 in E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. 4. Nautical. a. Applied to various contrivances of a forked shape in a ship or boat, e.g. a forked support (of wood or iron) for a boom, mast, spar, etc., when not in use (also called crotch); a forked rowlock. ΘΚΠ society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > equipment of vessel > other equipment of vessel > [noun] > supports for netting, for unused sails or spars roof-tree1336 crutch1769 mitch-board1883 1769 W. Falconer Universal Dict. Marine Transl. French Terms Chandeliers de chaloupe, the crutches of a boat, which sustain the main-boom, or the mast and sail, when they are lowered. 1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Iliad in Iliad & Odyssey I. i. 537 Lowering swift the mast Into its crutch. 1825 H. B. Gascoigne Path to Naval Fame 58 The Spanker-Boom then to the Crutch they bear. 1869 F. W. Bennett Leaves from Log 127 One of the men in beaching her lost his brass crutch (rowlock) overboard. β. 1769 W. Falconer Universal Dict. Marine Crotches..are fixed in different places of the ship..to support the spare-masts, yards, &c.1799 Naval Chron. 2 238 A bolt must be fixed in each crotch.1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher Sailor's Word-bk. Crutch or crotch..stanchions of wood or iron, whose upper parts are forked to receive masts, yards, and other spars, and which are fixed along the sides of gang ways. Crutches are used instead of rowlocks. b. Crooked timbers (or iron bands replacing them) fitted horizontally inside a vessel at the after end, and bolted to the stern post and the vessel's sides, to give additional strength to the connection of these parts. They correspond to the breast-hooks at the fore-end. ΘΚΠ society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > parts of vessels > body of vessel > rear part of vessel > [noun] > parts supporting stern-post crutch1769 heel knee1830 stern-knee1846 sternson1846 sternson-knee1849 clutch1850 oxter-plate1884 1769 W. Falconer Universal Dict. Marine Crotches, a name given to those crooked timbers that are placed upon the keel..upon which the frame of her hull grows narrower below, as it approaches the stem afore, and the stern post abaft. c1860 H. Stuart Novices or Young Seaman's Catech. (rev. ed.) 68 What are the crutches?.. Iron bands which unite the sides of the ship at the stern. 5. In a clock: The fork at the end of the arm which depends from the axis of the anchor-escapement, and receives the pendulum rod between its arms. ΘΚΠ the world > time > instruments for measuring time > clock > [noun] > part(s) of nut1428 peise1428 plumbc1450 Jack1498 clockwork1516 larum1542 Jack of the clockhouse1563 watch-wheel1568 work1570 plummeta1578 Jack of the clock1581 snail-cam1591 snail-work1591 pointer1596 quarter jack1604 mainspring1605 winder1606 notch-wheel1611 fusee1622 count-wheel1647 jack-wheel1647 frame1658 arbor1659 balance1660 fuse1674 hour-figure1675 stop1675 pallet1676 regulator1676 cock1678 movement1678 detent1688 savage1690 clock1696 pinwheel1696 starred wheel1696 swing-wheel1696 warning-wheel1696 watch1696 watch-part1696 hoop-wheel1704 hour-wheel1704 snail1714 step-wheel1714 tide-work1739 train1751 crutch1753 cannon pinion1764 rising board1769 remontoire1774 escapement1779 clock jack1784 locking plate1786 scapement1789 motion work1795 anchor escapement1798 scape1798 star-wheel1798 recoil escapement1800 recoiling pallet1801 recoiling scapement1801 cannon1802 hammer-tail1805 recoiling escapement1805 bottle jack1810 renovating spring1812 quarter-boy1815 pin tooth1817 solar wheel1819 impulse-teeth1825 pendulum wheel1825 pallet arbor1826 rewinder1826 rack hook1829 snail-wheel1831 quarter bell1832 tow1834 star pulley1836 watch train1838 clock train1843 raising-piece1843 wheelwork1843 gravity escapement1850 jumper1850 vertical escapement1850 time train1853 pin pallet1860 spade1862 dead well1867 stop-work1869 ringer1873 strike-or-silent1875 warning-piece1875 guard-pin1879 pendulum cock1881 warning-lever1881 beat-pin1883 fusee-piece1884 fusee-snail1884 shutter1884 tourbillion1884 tumbler1884 virgule1884 foliot1899 grasshopper1899 grasshopper escapement1899 trunk1899 pin lever1908 clock spring1933 1753 J. Ellicott in Philos. Trans. 1751–2 (Royal Soc.) 47 490 The pendulum is moved by a piece of steel (call'd the crutch) rivited to one end of the arbor. 1874 E. H. Knight Amer. Mech. Dict. I. 654/1 The pendulum-rod is contained within the limbs of the crutch. 6. a. A handle consisting of a crossbar like the head of a crutch. ΘΚΠ society > occupation and work > equipment > tool > parts of tools generally > [noun] > handle > of other shapes handstaff1440 brace1592 potent1688 crutch1831 grip-lug1891 baluster handle1956 pistol grip1972 1831 J. Holland Treat. Manuf. Metal I. 141 The shafts [of the spade, with]..the crutch or open handle, according to preference. 1874 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. Crutch..5. (Founding.) The cross-handle on the end of a shank (a founder's metal-ladle), by which it is tipped. b. Chiefly Australian and New Zealand. (See quot. 1965.) ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > sheep-farming > [noun] > sheep washing or dipping > instrument for pushing sheep under in dip crutch1916 1916 Jrnl. Agric. (N.Z.) 20 Sept. 228 It is necessary to hold each lot of sheep in the bath for the time necessary to secure thorough immersion. This may be done..by the use of the crutch. 1953 B. Stronach Musterer on Molesworth viii. 55 We had two men on the ‘crutch’ pushing the sheep's heads under, and seven men at the race. 1965 J. S. Gunn Terminol. Shearing Industry i. 18 Crutch, a mallet-shaped instrument (like a crutch) used to push sheep under in a swimming dip. Improved dips, especially spray dips, have caused this tool to become obsolete. 7. Soap-boiling. A staff with a perforated piece of wood or iron at the end, used to stir the ingredients. ΚΠ 1837 N. Whittock et al. Compl. Bk. Trades (1842) 409 A rotatory motion is given the crutch. 8. Thesaurus » Categories » a. The ‘fork’ of the human body: see crotch n. 5. b. the angle between the two flukes of a whale's flapper or tail-fin. ΚΠ 1748 F. Smith Voy. Discov. N.W. Passage 163 The Stockings reach up to the Crutch. 1771 B. Franklin Autobiogr. (1881) I. 140 I clapped my hand under his crutch, and..pitched him head-foremost into the river. 1842 F. D. Bennett Narr. Whaling Voy. II. 156 The tail-fin, or ‘flukes’..each half overlaps the other at the central notch, or ‘crutch’. 1844 Queen's Regulations & Orders Army 154 The Fly to extend from top to within 3½ inches above point of Crutch. Compounds C1. General attributive. crutch-like adj. C2. crutch-boots n. tall sea boots. ΘΚΠ the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > footwear > shoe or boot > boot > [noun] > for specific purpose > for wear at sea clumpera1825 crutch-boots1889 1889 P. H. Emerson Eng. Idyls 118 I went down in the cabin, and pulled off my crutch-boots. crutch-cane n. see crutch-stick n. ΘΚΠ the world > space > relative position > support > [noun] > that which supports > something to lean on > staff to lean on > cane wand1548 cane1590 rattan1657 Japan1678 whangee1776 rattan stick1812 Malacca cane1844 crutch-cane1846 dragon cane1851 Malacca1871 1846 E. Bulwer-Lytton Lucretia I. i. i. 17 With a gold headed crutch-cane. crutch-handled adj. having a transverse handle like the head of a crutch. ΘΚΠ society > occupation and work > equipment > tool > parts of tools generally > [adjective] > handle or stock > of specific shape or size > provided with crutched1706 crutch-headed1767 cross-handled1801 crutch-handled1864 1864 W. H. Ainsworth John Law I. Prol. iii. 42 He carried a crutch-handled cane. crutch-headed adj. ΘΚΠ society > occupation and work > equipment > tool > parts of tools generally > [adjective] > handle or stock > of specific shape or size > provided with crutched1706 crutch-headed1767 cross-handled1801 crutch-handled1864 1767 Babler I. 113 I..threw by my crutch headed stick. crutch-hole n. a hole to receive a crutch or movable rowlock. ΘΚΠ society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > equipment of vessel > rowing apparatus > [noun] > rowlock > socket for movable crutch-hole1874 1874 F. G. D. Bedford Sailor's Pocket Bk. vi. 185 Boats..fitted with a crutch hole on each quarter where an oar could be worked to assist the rudder. crutch-palsy n. paralysis of the arm caused by the pressure of a crutch. crutch-pin n. the pin of a pendulum crutch. ΚΠ 1772 F. Wollaston in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 63 77 The bottom of the stem, instead of receiving the crutch-pin, is turned sideways. crutch-stick n. a crutch-handled stick. ΘΚΠ the world > space > relative position > support > [noun] > that which supports > something to lean on > staff to lean on > other types of walking stick pikeOE bourdona1300 pickc1330 pickstaff1356 pikestaff?a1500 gribble1578 supplejack1748 crutch-stick1780 spear-stick1801 kebbie1816 Penang lawyer1827 alpenstock1829 thumb-stick1945 1780 in W. Hone Every-day Bk. (1827) II. 1478 Walks with a short crutch stick with an ivory head. crutch-tail n. see crotch-tail n. at crotch n. Compounds. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1893; most recently modified version published online March 2022). crutchv.¹ Brit. /krʌtʃ/, U.S. /krətʃ/ Etymology: < crutch n. 1. a. transitive. To support as with a crutch or crutches, to prop. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > easiness > aid, help, or assistance > support > [verb (transitive)] > support with a prop underprop1532 crutch1682 1682 N. Tate & J. Dryden 2nd Pt. Absalom & Achitophel 13 Two Fools that Crutch their Feeble sense on Verse. 1833 I. D'Israeli in New Monthly Mag. 37 432 The genius of Moliere..in its first attempts..did not move alone; it was crutched by imitation. 1890 Caine in Pall Mall Gaz. 28 June 5/2 This sickly Government, crutched by Lord Hartington and Mr. Chamberlain. b. with up: To prop up, sustain. ΘΚΠ the world > space > relative position > support > [verb (transitive)] > prop shore1340 undershore1393 prop1507 underpropa1535 crutch1641 rance1680 trig1711 spur1733 stut1808 spurn1865 scaffold1884 the world > action or operation > easiness > aid, help, or assistance > support > [verb (transitive)] lasteOE i-hentc1225 uphold?c1225 upbeara1300 sustainc1300 understand13.. uplift1338 maintainc1350 supporta1393 underset1395 buttressc1400 supprise1447 bolster1508 stay1526 stay1526 undershore?a1534 underpropa1535 to hold up by the chin1546 back1548 suborn1548 suffult?c1550 upshore?1567 shoulder1577 upstay1600 underwrite1609 abone1622 crutch1641 float1823 backstop1956 1641 R. Carpenter Experience, Hist., & Divinitie ii. viii. 193 Howsoever they crutch it up handsomly. 1816 W. Scott Old Mortality Concl., in Tales of my Landlord 1st Ser. IV. 339 A history, growing already vapid, is but dully crutched up by a detail of circumstances which every reader must have anticipated. 1861 G. W. Thornbury Life J. M. W. Turner I. 106 Old crippled buildings..crutched up with posts and logs. 2. intransitive. To go on crutches, to limp. (Also, to crutch it.) ΘΚΠ the world > movement > progressive motion > walking > walk, tread, or step [verb (intransitive)] > limp haltc825 cripplec1220 hip1440 limp1570 linch1570 claudicate1623 hop1700 crimple1754 hilch1786 crutch1828 hamble1828 dot1843 peg-leg1969 1828 J. Wilson in Blackwood's Mag. 23 810 Up and down..the various steps..do we delight to crutch it. 1847 Tait's Edinb. Mag. 14 291 The most apparent ‘dodge’ on which a statesman ever ‘crutched’ round a corner. 3. transitive. Soap-boiling. To stir with a crutch. ΚΠ 1837 N. Whittock et al. Compl. Bk. Trades (1842) 410 What the new crutching wheels..will cost..we have no present means of stating. 4. To push (a sheep) into a dip with a crutch (see crutch n. 6b). Chiefly Australian and New Zealand. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > sheep-farming > rear sheep or wool [verb (transitive)] > dip river1531 to dip sheep1840 crutch1886 1886 C. Scott Pract. Sheep-farming 135 The hot water tank into which the sheep are put next morning has three divisions, in each of which they are well crutched. 1940 E. C. Studholme Te Waimate (1954) xiii. 117 One day whilst trying to ‘crutch’ (push under) some slippery-backed old ewe..Geoffrey fell in. 5. To cut off the wool or hair from the hind-quarters of (a sheep, dog, etc.). Chiefly Australian and New Zealand. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > sheep-farming > sheep-shearing > shear sheep [verb (transitive)] > manner, technique, or part beard1429 belt?1523 feazea1642 shirl1688 dag1706 tag1707 clat1838 tomahawk1859 rough1878 to open up1886 pink1897 crutch1915 barrow1933 slum1965 1915 J. R. Macdonald N.Z. Sheepfarming xxv. 68 If crutching is followed, any wool that might hinder the lambs from sucking may be clipped. 1920 N.Z. Jrnl. Agric. 20 July 8 The keeping-lambs are crutched, branded, dipped, and placed out. 1942 R. B. Kelley Animal Breeding vii. 76 We find it advantageous also to ‘crutch’ long-coated bitches. 1946 F. D. Davison Dusty vi. 65 Blowfly season was drawing near. Morrison and Tom were crutching the sheep, cutting away the soiled wool from under their tails, where they would be most likely to be blown. Derivatives ˈcrutching n. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > sheep-farming > [noun] > sheep washing or dipping sheep-wash749 rivering1532 sheepwashing1826 crutching1837 sheep-dipping1852 jetting1941 the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > sheep-farming > sheep-shearing > [noun] > partial shearing bearding1484 crutching1837 clatting1844 tagginga1890 barrowing1949 1837 [see sense 3]. 1915 [see sense 5]. 1933 L. G. D. Acland in Press (Christchurch, N.Z.) 7 Oct. 15/7 When sheep are dipped, they are shoved under with a thing like an inverted crutch. This is called crutching. 1941 Nature 5 Apr. 421/2 ‘Crutching’..consists of shearing the wool away from the area around the tail so that this part keeps clean. 1953 O. E. Middleton in C. K. Stead N.Z. Short Stories (1966) 2nd Ser. 189 But aside from shearing and crutching times, life was good at the station. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1893; most recently modified version published online June 2022). † crutchv.² Obsolete. Misprint or error for cratch v., to scratch. ΘΚΠ the world > health and disease > ill health > injury > injure [verb (transitive)] > scratch or graze cratchc1320 scrat1340 cramse1440 scratch1474 crutch1481 rata1560 razea1586 gravel1608 ravel1621 graze1701 ruffle1731 skin1795 bark1850 1481 W. Caxton tr. Hist. Reynard Fox (1880) viii. 15 Bruyn..crutched [Flem. crassede] with the hynder feet. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1893; most recently modified version published online March 2021). < n.c900v.¹1641v.²1481
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crutchn.

Compounds

crutchv.1

Derivatives

† crutchv.2

crutchv.¹

† crutchv.²