cratch

American  

[krach] / krætʃ /

noun

Archaic.

1. a crib for fodder; manger.

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cratch British  

/ krætʃ /

noun

1. a rack for holding fodder for cattle, etc

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Etymology

Origin of cratch

1175–1225; Middle English cracche < dialectal Old French crache, variant of creche crèche

Example Sentences

"It's what a pig-killer fastens the pig down with—on the cratch."

From The Borough Treasurer by Fletcher, J. S. (Joseph Smith)

It comes from the Old French dialect form peche, as match comes from mèche, and cratch, a manger, from crèche, of German origin, and ultimately the same word as crib.

From The Romance of Words (4th ed.) by Weekley, Ernest

Dictionary of Phrase and Fable," thinks this "the corrupt for cratch cradle or manger cradle, in which the infant Saviour was laid.

From Our Cats and All About Them Their Varieties, Habits, and Management; and for Show, the Standard of Excellence and Beauty; Described and Pictured by Weir, Harrison

A cratch is a cross-legged crib from which cattle are fed.

From Golden Moments Bright Stories for Young Folks by Anonymous

Coiros are beeves fattened at the cratch in ox-stalls, or in the fresh guimo meadows.

From Gargantua and Pantagruel, Illustrated, Book 1 by Motteux, Peter Anthony