crowfoot

American  

[kroh-foot] / ˈkroʊˌfʊt /

noun

crowfoots, plural crowfeet plural

1. any plant of the genus Ranunculus, especially one with divided leaves suggestive of a crow's foot; buttercup.

2. any of various other plants with leaves or other parts suggestive of a bird's foot, as certain species of the genus Geranium.

3. caltrop.

4. Nautical. an arrangement of several bridlelike ropes rove through a suspended euphroe to support the backbone of an awning at a number of points.

5. Movies, Television. a three-legged device placed under a tripod to keep the camera from slipping.

6. (on an architectural or engineering drawing) a V -shaped mark the apex of which is a reference point.

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crowfoot British  

/ ˈkrəʊˌfʊt /

noun

1. any of several plants of the genus Ranunculus, such as R. sceleratus and R. aquatilis ( water crowfoot ) that have yellow or white flowers and divided leaves resembling the foot of a crow See also buttercup

2. any of various other plants that have leaves or other parts resembling a bird's foot

3. nautical a bridle-like arrangement of lines rove through a wooden block or attached to a ring for supporting an awning from above

4. military another name for caltrop

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• crowfeet
  plural
• crowfoots
  plural

Etymology

Origin of crowfoot

First recorded in 1400–50, crowfoot is from the late Middle English word crowefote. See crow ¹, foot

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

crowfoot crowfeet crowfoots

Angela has lived and worked on the river for decades and in recent years she has noticed an increase in pollution in the water and a rapid decline in species, like salmon and river crowfoot.

From BBC ● Mar. 19, 2022

When Ike turned again, his face told the story: his mouth turned down; his eyes, framed with crowfoot lines, squinted.

From Time Magazine Archive

Close by, under the left bank, a bed of crowfoot trailed downstream, the wheel-like leaves all submerged.

From "Watership Down: A Novel" by Richard Adams

The first in Nature's dainty wreath, We'll cull the brier-rose, The crowfoot and the purple heath, And pink that sweetly blows.

From Enthusiasm and Other Poems by Moodie, Susanna

Here the flowers native to the prairie, the coulee, the canyon, were gathered; the early wind flower, the crowfoot and the buffalo bean, wild snowdrops and violets.

From The Sky Pilot in No Man's Land by Connor, Ralph

His clear brown eyes are edged with crowfeet wrinkles from squinting into the sun.

From Time Magazine Archive

The crowfeet dead-eyes are long cylindrical blocks with a number of small holes in them, to receive the legs or lines composing the crow-foot.

From The Sailor's Word-Book An Alphabetical Digest of Nautical Terms, including Some More Especially Military and Scientific, but Useful to Seamen; as well as Archaisms of Early Voyagers, etc. by Belcher, Edward, Sir

When this is done it is not necessary to keep the shoulders back in a forced, strained position, and so make little crowfeet in the back of your gown.

From The Woman Beautiful or, The Art of Beauty Culture by Stevans, Helen Follett

Of double crowfoots there are three others, the types of which are R. bulbosus, acris, and repens.

From Scientific American Supplement, No. 358, November 11, 1882 by Various

Now and then there was a splash as some amphibian, more lucky than his fellows, dived through the crowfoots into the pond.

From Lives of the Fur Folk by Haviland, M. D.