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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

cramp.

A painful contraction of a muscle which cannot be controlled; (sometimes) a similar pain even without noticeable contraction.

5 characters1 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/kɹæmp/
  1. A painful contraction of a muscle which cannot be controlled; (sometimes) a similar pain even without noticeable contraction.

    countable · uncountable
    He retired hurt at 31 due to a leg cramp.
  2. That which confines or contracts.

    countable · uncountable
  3. A clamp for carpentry or masonry.

    countable · uncountable
  4. A piece of wood having a curve corresponding to that of the upper part of the instep, on which the upper leather of a boot is stretched to give it the requisite shape.

    countable · uncountable
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *krampôder. Frankish *krampōder. Proto-Germanic *krampôder. Middle Dutch crampeder. Old French crampebor. Middle English crampe English cramp From Middle English crampe, from Old French crampe (“cramp”), from Frankish *krampa (“cramp”), from Proto-West Germanic *krampu, from Proto-Germanic *krampō (“cramp, clasp”). Distant relative of English crop.

verb/kɹæmp/
  1. (of a muscle) To contract painfully and uncontrollably.

    intransitive
  2. To affect with cramps or spasms.

    transitive
  3. To prohibit movement or expression of.

    figuratively · transitive
    You're cramping my style.
  4. To restrain to a specific physical position, as if with a cramp.

    transitive
    You're going to need to cramp the wheels on this hill.
  5. To fasten or hold with, or as if with, a cramp iron.

  6. To bind together; to unite.

    broadly
  7. To form on a cramp.

    to cramp boot legs
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *krampôder. Frankish *krampōder. Proto-Germanic *krampôder. Middle Dutch crampeder. Old French crampebor. Middle English crampe English cramp From Middle English crampe, from Old French crampe (“cramp”), from Frankish *krampa (“cramp”), from Proto-West Germanic *krampu, from Proto-Germanic *krampō (“cramp, clasp”). Distant relative of English crop.

adj/kɹæmp/
  1. cramped; narrow

    archaic
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *krampôder. Frankish *krampōder. Proto-Germanic *krampôder. Middle Dutch crampeder. Old French crampebor. Middle English crampe English cramp From Middle English crampe, from Old French crampe (“cramp”), from Frankish *krampa (“cramp”), from Proto-West Germanic *krampu, from Proto-Germanic *krampō (“cramp, clasp”). Distant relative of English crop.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.