1
as in eccentrics
a person of odd or whimsical habits
she's a bit of a crank, but still a good-hearted person
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in crabs
an irritable and complaining person
he's always a crank until he has his morning coffee
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in whims
a sudden impulsive and apparently unmotivated idea or action
his endless and unpredictable cranks made spending time with him exhausting
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of cranks
The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 23 Nov. 2025
Perhaps the base of the U is a gear system connecting the cranks at one end.
—New Atlas, 22 Nov. 2025
Far from being uninformed cranks, many of the people embracing Luddism grew up with smartphones and know all too well how enticing (and overwhelming) the technology can be.
—Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 8 Oct. 2025
For Southern rock, the Allman Brothers Band’s Live at Fillmore East or Lynyrd Skynyrd’s One More from the Road were must-cranks.
—David Browne, Rolling Stone, 13 Sep. 2025
In what was once the typesetting room of the Miami Daily News, later called the Miami News, large scrolls of clippings can be viewed by visitors using hand cranks that mimic a newspaper rolling off the press.
—Michelle F. Solomon, Miami Herald, 13 Sep. 2025
Framed as cranks more than reasonable critics, the #FSGOut contingent have penetrated rather than defined the conversation around Liverpool since FSG took control in late 2010.
—Simon Hughes, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2025
Plus, the human longevity field is notorious for cranks, unproven supplements and fly-by-night clinics.
—Amy Feldman, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Noun
In academic and intellectual circles, defenders of market economics were few and far between and widely viewed as cranks or worse.
—Recent Examples of Synonyms for cranks
Noun
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The logger and railsplitter occasionally encounters American eccentrics, like a chatty drifter prone to sporting bible verses and an old coot of a demolitions expert with a philosophical bent.—
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Appealing to consumers searching for a piece of history, the store has gained a following of visitors hunting for unique souvenirs, designers on inspiration trips and local eccentrics.—
Noun
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On top of this lobster heist that’s grabbing headlines, a load of crabs being shipped from a cold storage facility in Massachusetts also went missing on December 2, The Boston Globe reported.—
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The divers found a swath of ocean populated by weird and wild creatures, from delicate corals and shimmering worms to spiky sea slugs and hairy crabs.—
Noun
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Not as freaks to be studied from afar, mimicked, and exploited for other people’s creative whims or amusement, but as complex and whole parts of the world worth exploring and celebrating.—
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Beyond immigration, Miller specializes in turning the president’s whims and rantings into government policy.—
Verb
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Dry all surfaces completely and replace knobs, drip pans, and coils back on the stove.—
Noun
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The next slide showed a mouthwatering array of meats, cheeses, crudite and nuts set for snacking on, along with bottles of Haack's champagne line, Clé Cachée, chilling behind an array of glasses.—
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For instance, nuts, seeds, nut butters, and chocolate are more prone to oxidation, which can lead to rancid flavors or a gritty texture.—
Noun
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If family needs cause drama, set kind boundaries and explain them to any complainers.—
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The faculty experience has been that administrations often side with the complainers.—
Noun
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Our legal and historical notions of agency have long depended on physical embodiment—the sanctity of a single, identifiable body.—
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But a more recent line of research has pushed back against these notions, using statistical analysis to suggest that the apparent variations in response are just the result of measurement error and day-to-day biological variability.—
Verb
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Preliminary work already is underway at Starved Rock State Park in LaSalle County for an $18 million project that will include the first major improvements in three decades to a 13-mile trail system that winds through sandstone canyons and bluffs along the Illinois River.—
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The region has been battered in recent days by Santa Ana winds, the Southern California phenomenon that can topple trees and power lines.—
Cite this Entry
“Cranks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cranks. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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