crock
1 Americannoun
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an earthenware pot, jar, or other container.
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a fragment of earthenware; potsherd.
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Slang. euphemistic shortening of crock of shit.
noun
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a person or thing that is old, decrepit, or broken-down.
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Slang. a person who complains about or insists on being treated for an imagined illness.
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an old ewe.
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an old worn-out horse.
verb (used with object)
noun
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dialect soot or smut
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colour that rubs off fabric
verb
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dialect (tr) to soil with or as if with soot
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(intr) (of a dyed fabric) to release colour when rubbed, as a result of imperfect dyeing
noun
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an earthen pot, jar, etc
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a piece of broken earthenware
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Also: crock of shit. informal a quantity or source of lies or nonsense
noun
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slang a person or thing, such as a car, that is old or decrepit (esp in the phrase old crock )
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an old broken-down horse or ewe
verb
Etymology
Origin of crock1
First recorded before 1000; Middle English crokke, Old English croc(c), crocca “pot”; cognate with Old Norse krukka “jug”
Origin of crock2
First recorded in 1520–30; Middle English crok “old ewe,” perhaps akin to crack (verb) and obsolete crack “whore”; compare Low German krakke “broken-down horse”
Origin of crock3
First recorded in 1650–60; origin uncertain
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.
So when these master-of-the-universe types say they can function on four, five hours, it’s a complete crock.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 5, 2026
She brought it to the event in an electric crock pot.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 5, 2025
As Fintan O'Toole quipped recently in the Irish Times, his country "found the crock of gold at the end of the rainbow without even trying to catch the leprechaun."
From Salon ● Dec. 2, 2024
For some people, it’s “go big or go home,” with feasts complete with grills, crock pots and warming trays.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 21, 2023
She beamed at me and reached over the propane stove for the pickle crock, where we kept the money.
From "Jacob Have I Loved" by Katherine Paterson
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.