Cricket Crick"et noun [ Middle English
criket , Old French
crequet ,
criquet ; probably of German origin, and akin to English
creak ; confer Dutch
kriek a cricket. See
Creak .]
(Zoology) An orthopterous insect of the genus Gryllus , and allied genera. The males make chirping, musical notes by rubbing together the basal parts of the veins of the front wings. » The common European cricket is
Gryllus domesticus ; the common large black crickets of America are
G. niger ,
G. neglectus , and others.
Balm cricket .
See under Balm . --
Cricket bird ,
a small European bird ( Silvia locustella ); -- called also grasshopper warbler . --
Cricket frog ,
a small American tree frog ( Acris gryllus ); -- so called from its chirping.
Cricket Crick"et noun [ Anglo-Saxon
cricc ,
crycc , crooked staff, crutch. Perh. first used in sense 1, a stool probably having been first used as a wicket. See
Crutch .]
1. A low stool. 2. A game much played in England, and sometimes in America, with a ball, bats, and wickets, the players being arranged in two contesting parties or sides. 3. (Architecture) A small false roof, or the raising of a portion of a roof, so as to throw off water from behind an obstacle, such as a chimney.
Crime Crime (krīm)
noun [ French
crime , from Latin
crimen judicial decision, that which is subjected to such a decision, charge, fault, crime, from the root of
cernere to decide judicially. See
Certain .]
1. Any violation of law, either divine or human; an omission of a duty commanded, or the commission of an act forbidden by law. 2. Gross violation of human law, in distinction from a misdemeanor or trespass, or other slight offense. Hence, also, any aggravated offense against morality or the public welfare; any outrage or great wrong. "To part error from
crime ."
Tennyson. »
Crimes , in the English common law, are grave offenses which were originally capitally punished (murder, rape, robbery, arson, burglary, and larceny), as distinguished from misdemeanors, which are offenses of a lighter grade. See
Misdemeanors .
3. Any great wickedness or sin; iniquity. No crime was thine, if 'tis no crime to love.
Pope.
4. That which occasion crime. [ Obsolete]
The tree of life, the crime of our first father's fall.
Spenser.
Capital crime ,
a crime punishable with death. Syn. -- Sin; vice; iniquity; wrong. --
Crime ,
Sin ,
Vice .
Sin is the generic term, embracing wickedness of every kind, but specifically denoting an offense as committed against God.
Crime is strictly a violation of law either human or divine; but in present usage the term is commonly applied to actions contrary to the laws of the State.
Vice is more distinctively that which springs from the inordinate indulgence of the natural appetites, which are in themselves innocent. Thus intemperance, unchastity, duplicity, etc., are
vices ; while murder, forgery, etc., which spring from the indulgence of selfish passions, are
crimes .