different between crutch vs cratch

English

Etymology

From Middle English crucche, from Old English cry?? (“crutch, staff”), from Proto-Germanic *krukj? (“crutch, staff”), from Proto-Indo-European *grewg- (“wrinkle, bend”), from Proto-Indo-European *ger- (“to turn, bend”).Cognate with Scots curche, crutch (“crutch, stilts”), Dutch kruk (“crutch”), Low German krukke, Krück (“crutch”), German Krücke (“crutch”), Swedish krycka (“crutch”). Latin crucia, crucca, croccia, crocia (“crutch”), and its descendants are ultimately from the Germanic.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /k??t?/
• Rhymes: -?t?

Noun

crutch (plural crutches)

1. A device to assist in motion as a cane, especially one that provides support under the arm to reduce weight on a leg.
2. Something that supports, often used negatively to indicate that it is not needed and causes an unhealthful dependency; a prop
   • 1710, Edmund Smith, A poem on the death of Mr. John Philips

     Rhyme […] is […] at best a crutch that lifts the weak alone.

3. A crotch; the area of body where the legs fork from the trunk.
4. A form of pommel for a woman's saddle, consisting of a forked rest to hold the leg of the rider.
5. (nautical) A knee, or piece of knee timber.
6. (nautical) A forked stanchion or post; a crotch.
7. (heraldry) A type of cross formed from two C-shapes joined back to back.

Translations

Verb

crutch (third-person singular simple present crutches, present participle crutching, simple past and past participle crutched)

1. (transitive) To support on crutches; to prop up.
2. (intransitive) To move on crutches.
3. (transitive) To shear the hindquarters of a sheep; to dag.
   • 2010, January 29, Emma Partridge, Stock Journal, "Richie Foster a cut above the rest"

     After learning how to crutch at 13, he could dag 400 sheep in a day by the spring of 1965 and earned himself more than just a bit of pocket money.

4. (transitive) In soap-making: to stir with a crutch.

Derived terms

• crutcher

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /k?æt?/

Etymology 1

From Middle English cratchen, cracchen (“to scratch”), alteration of *cratsen (“to scratch”), from Old Norse *kratsa or Middle Low German kratsen, krassen (“to scratch”), both ultimately from Old High German krazz?n, craz?n (“to scratch”), from Proto-Germanic *kratt?n? (“to scratch”), from Proto-Indo-European *gred-, *grod- (“to scratch, scrape”). Cognate with Icelandic krota (“to engrave”). Compare also Icelandic krassa (“to scrawl”), Danish kradse (“to scratch, scrape, claw”), Swedish kratsa (“to scratch”), Dutch kratsen (“to scratch”), German kratzen (“to scratch”).

Verb

cratch (third-person singular simple present cratches, present participle cratching, simple past and past participle cratched)

1. (obsolete) To scratch.

References

• An historical dictionary

Etymology 2

From Middle English cratche, cracche, crecche (“crib”), from Old French creche (“crib, manger”), from Frankish *krippja (“crib”), from Proto-Germanic *kribj?. More at creche, crib.

Noun

cratch (plural cratches)

1. (obsolete) A grated crib or manger.
   • 1596, Edmund Spenser, A Hymne of Heavenly Love

     Begin from first where He encradled was, / In simple cratch, wrapt in a wad of hay.

2. (nautical) The vertical planks at the forward end of the hold of a traditional English narrowboat which constrain the cargo and support the top plank or walkway.

Derived terms

• cratch cradle

Etymology 3

Noun

cratch (plural cratches)

1. A swelling on a horse's pastern, under the fetlock.