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crabstick

[krab-stik]
noun
  1. a stick, cane, or club made of wood, especially of the crab tree.
  2. an ill-tempered, grouchy person; crosspatch.
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Origin of crabstick

First recorded in 1695–1705; crab2 + stick1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for crabstick

Historical Examples

  • The rider applied the crabstick more vigorously than before.

    Self-control

    Mary Brunton

  • Crabstick, on this occasion, had not far to go to seek her own couch.

    The Eustace Diamonds

    Anthony Trollope

  • Crabstick, with a good deal of reticence, supported her mistress.

    The Eustace Diamonds

    Anthony Trollope

  • I have told you the whole story, as it has been told to me by the woman Crabstick.

    The Eustace Diamonds

    Anthony Trollope

  • He told Toney that old Crabstick was dead and that he must go home.

British Dictionary definitions for crabstick

crabstick

noun
  1. a stick, cane, or cudgel made of crab-apple wood
  2. informal a bad-tempered person
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012