Crimp Definition

krĭmp
crimped, crimping, crimps
verb
crimped, crimping, crimps
To press into narrow, regular folds; pleat or corrugate.
Webster's New World
To make (hair, etc.) wavy or curly.
Webster's New World
To mold or bend (leather for shoe uppers, etc.) into shape.
Webster's New World
To gash (the flesh of a fish, etc.) so as to make the muscles contract and stay firm in cooking.
Webster's New World
To have a hampering or obstructive effect on.
Supplies of foreign oil were crimped by the embargo.
American Heritage
Antonyms:
noun
crimps
The act of crimping.
Webster's New World
Something made by or as if by crimping, as:
American Heritage
A crimped pleat, fold, or part.
Webster's New World
An obstructing or hampering agent or force.
Rising interest rates put a crimp in new home construction.
American Heritage
Crimped hair.
Webster's New World
adjective
(obsolete) Easily crumbled; friable; brittle.
Wiktionary
(obsolete) Weak; inconsistent; contradictory.
Wiktionary
idiom
put a crimp in
  • to obstruct; hinder
Webster's New World

Other Word Forms of Crimp

Noun

Singular:
crimp
Plural:
crimps

Idioms, Phrasal Verbs Related to Crimp

Origin of Crimp

  • Dutch or Low German krimpen from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • Origin unknown

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

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