crook
noun
a bent or curved implement, piece, appendage, etc.; hook.
crook
1 American
[krook]
/ krʊk /
noun
-
crooks
plural
-
a bent or curved implement, piece, appendage, etc.; hook.
-
the hooked part of anything.
-
an instrument or implement having a bent or curved part, as a shepherd's staff hooked at one end or the crosier of a bishop or abbot.
-
a dishonest person, especially a sharper, swindler, or thief.
-
a bend, turn, or curve.
a crook in the road.
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the act of crooking or bending.
-
a pothook.
-
Also called shank. a device on some musical wind instruments for changing the pitch, consisting of a piece of tubing inserted into the main tube.
verb (used with object)
-
crooks,
present (3rd person singular)
-
crooked,
past participle, past
-
crooking
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
crooks,
present (3rd person singular)
-
crooked,
past participle, past
-
crooking
present participle
crook
2
American
[krook]
/ krʊk /
Crook
3
American
[krook]
/ krʊk /
noun
crook
British
/ krʊk /
noun
-
a curved or hooked thing
-
a staff with a hooked end, such as a bishop's crosier or shepherd's staff
-
a turn or curve; bend
-
informal a dishonest person, esp a swindler or thief
-
the act or an instance of crooking or bending
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Also called: shank. a piece of tubing added to a brass instrument in order to obtain a lower harmonic series
verb
adjective
-
informal
-
ill
-
of poor quality
-
unpleasant; bad
-
-
informal to lose one's temper
-
informal to rebuke or upbraid
crook
Idioms
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
crooksimple
-
crookssimple
-
have crookedperfect
-
has crookedperfect
-
am crookingprogressive
-
are crookingprogressive
-
is crookingprogressive
-
have been crookingperfect progressive
-
has been crookingperfect progressive
Past
-
crookedsimple
-
had crookedperfect
-
was crookingprogressive
-
were crookingprogressive
-
had been crookingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of crook1
First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English crok, crouk, from Old Norse krōkr “hook, barb, corner”
Origin of crook2
First recorded in 1875–80; perhaps alteration of cronk
Explanation
A crook is long staff that’s bent at one end, like something you might see a shepherd carrying. A crook can also be a criminal — a person who’s dishonest, or bent, just like the staff. The noun crook entered English in the 13th century as a way to describe the long tool with a hook at one end. It later took on the meaning of “petty criminal.” You can use crook as an informal way to describe someone who is dishonest. A crook is typically involved in minor or nonviolent crimes; you wouldn’t use the word to describe a murderer, for example. A con man or someone committing fraud could be called a crook.
Vocabulary lists containing crook
"The Tragedy of Hamlet," Vocabulary from Act 3
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Selection Vocabulary 2, Unit 3
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American Street
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“This looks like the role of a lifetime for you,” says Jing-nan’s uncle, a cheerful crook who wants his nephew to inform him of any illicit activities at the plant.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
It was late, and the store was out of disposable bags, so I tucked some of the loot into my dance bag and cradled the rest in the crook of my arm.
From Salon ● Jan. 1, 2026
Hemlock is a small town located in the crook of the Michigan mitten, between the thumb and the fingers.
From Barron's ● Nov. 7, 2025
"Sholay is the eighth wonder of the world," Dharmendra, who plays a small-town crook and is paired up with Bachchan in the film, said in a recent statement.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2025
Snow had drifted into his nostrils in a cruel parody of breath, but his ice-filmed eyes were open, staring at something Torak couldn’t see: something that was cradled in the crook of his dead arm.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
The testimony of Eusebio Ortiz, who was involved in a shooting in Ontario in October, and Carey Crook, revealed that ICE had replaced detailed operational dossiers with “baseball cards.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
Nonetheless, "we're definitely under pressure," said Crook, president of the National Federation of Fish Fryers.
From Barron's ● Apr. 5, 2026
The defense put the onus for the violence on Crook.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026
The former Monty Python star described Crook as a "marvellous writer, one of the most original".
From BBC ● Feb. 10, 2026
Back at the White House, Crook hears feet thudding up the stairs.
From "Lincoln's Last Days: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever" by Bill O'Reilly
“I mean, they need to be able to do that. But they just, you know, they need to pay more attention to the crooks than people trying to make an honest living.”
From Salon ● Jun. 2, 2026
Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds said the waste dumping was "orchestrated by a group of shameless crooks".
From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2026
Vigilante uses Japanese musical instrument to deter crooks.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 12, 2026
This “lost novella,” a transitional work between Leonard’s early Western stories and his later novels of cops and crooks, began as an outline for a proposed movie script.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2025
They were common among crooks in the Barrel who didn’t want to get caught in a dark alley, but couldn’t be bothered to lug around lanterns.
From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo
But the Dodgers failed to turn a bases-loaded situation into a crooked number when Ohtani grounded into a double play to end the inning.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026
In 2019, the IRS told Murrin she owed unpaid tax, penalties and interest for income-tax returns the crooked accountant filed from 1993 to 1999.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 25, 2026
Fisk’s flamboyance and Gould’s bribes made the Erie’s watered stock seem obviously crooked.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
"They're crooked," he continued, "just like you're crooked."
From BBC ● Jun. 7, 2026
His Valfierno was out of the movies too: handsome, dashing, crooked.
From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day
Short as trees go, it has a hunkered-down look, its branches starting low to the ground and crooking and knotting as they rise.
From New York Times ● May 10, 2021
Bransfield summoned him out of classes, sometimes by knocking on the classroom door and beckoning him by crooking his finger, he told The Post.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 29, 2019
He was having an almost violently good time, it appeared, kissing women on the cheek, crooking his arm around his friends’ necks.
From The New Yorker ● Jun. 24, 2019
So police officers, crooking a single finger, have ordered scores of drivers to the curb for breaking the law and issued them a fine for $130.
From New York Times ● Feb. 3, 2012
“Owooo!” wailed Arm, crooking his legs and advancing on the villagers like a giant spider.
From "The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm" by Nancy Farmer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
