Adjacent Words

Crouch definitions

	Tweet

Webster's 1828 Dictionary

CROUCH, v.i. [G., to creep, to stoop, to cringe.]
1. To bend down; to stoop low; to lie close to the ground; as an animal. A dog crouches to his master; a lion crouches in the thicket.
2. To bend servilely; to stoop meanly; to fawn; to cringe.
Every one that is left in thine house shall come and crouch to him for a piece of bread. 2 Samuel 2.
CROUCH, v.t. [See Cross.] To sign with the cross; to bless. [Not in use.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the act of bending low with the limbs close to the body v
1: bend one's back forward from the waist on down; "he crouched down"; "She bowed before the Queen"; "The young man stooped to pick up the girl's purse" [syn: crouch, stoop, bend, bow]
2: sit on one's heels; "In some cultures, the women give birth while squatting"; "The children hunkered down to protect themselves from the sandstorm" [syn: squat, crouch, scrunch, scrunch up, hunker, hunker down]

Merriam Webster's

verb Etymology: Middle English Date: 14th century intransitive verb 1. a. to lower the body stance especially by bending the legs <a sprinter crouched ready to go> b. to lie close to the ground with the legs bent <a pair of cats, crouching on the brink of a fight — Aldous Huxley> 2. to bend or bow servilely ; cringe 3. to stand at a low height <cottages crouched along the river> transitive verb to bow especially in humility or fear ; bend • crouch noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. & n. --v.intr. lower the body with the limbs close to the chest, esp. for concealment, or (of an animal) before pouncing; be in this position. --n. an act of crouching; a crouching position. Etymology: ME, perh. f. OF crochir be bent f. croc hook: cf. CROOK

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Crouch Crouch (krouch; 129), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Crouched (kroucht); p. pr. & vb. n. Crouching.] [OE. cruchen, crouchen, crouken; cf. E. creep, G. krauchen, kriechen, or E. crook to bend, also crouch to cross.] 1. To bend down; to stoop low; to lie close to the ground with the logs bent, as an animal when waiting for prey, or in fear. Now crouch like a cur. --Beau. & Fl. 2. To bend servilely; to stoop meanly; to fawn; to cringe. ``A crouching purpose.'' --Wordsworth. Must I stand and crouch Under your testy humor? --Shak.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Crouch Crouch, v. t. [OE. cruchen, crouchen, from cruche, crouche, cross. Cf. Crosier, Crook.] 1. To sign with the cross; to bless. [Obs.] --Chaucer. 2. To bend, or cause to bend, as in humility or fear. She folded her arms across her chest, And crouched her head upon her breast. --Colerige.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(crouches, crouching, crouched) If you are crouching, your legs are bent under you so that you are close to the ground and leaning forward slightly. We were crouching in the bushes... The man was crouched behind the Mercedes. = squat VERB: V prep/adv, V-ed • Crouch is also a noun. They walked in a crouch, each bent over close to the ground. N-SING • Crouch down means the same as crouch. He crouched down and reached under the mattress... He crouched down beside him. PHRASAL VERB: V P, V P prep/adv

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

v. n. 1. Couch, squat, lie flat, stoop low, lie close to the ground. 2. Cower, cringe, fawn, truckle.

Moby Thesaurus

bend, bend the knee, bend the neck, bend to, bob, bootlick, bow, bow and scrape, bow down, bow to, couch, cower, crawl, creep, cringe, cringe to, crouch before, curtsy, dip, do homage, do obeisance, duck, fawn, flatter, flinch, genuflect, genuflection, get down, grovel, huddle, hug the earth, hunch, hunch down, hunker down, kneel, kneel to, kneeling, knuckle to, kowtow, lick the dust, lickspittle, lie low, lie prone, lie prostrate, lie under, nod, obeisance, prostration, quail, reverence, salaam, scrouch down, skulk, slink, sneak, squat, stoop, supination, swat, toadeat, toady, truckle, truckle to, underlie, wallow, welter, wince