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Added 10 October 2026

crib

/kɹɪb/ noun

In Latin: cunae, cunabula Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about crib at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Baby bed with high sides made of slats.
A literal translation used in studying a foreign language (often used illicitly).
A bin or granary for storing grains.

verb

Use a crib, as in an exam.
Take unauthorized (intellectual material).
Line with beams or planks.
crib a construction hole

Origin

From Middle English crib, cribbe, from Old English crib, cryb, cribb, crybb (“couch, bed; manger, stall”), from Proto-West Germanic *kribbjā, from Proto-Germanic *kribjǭ (“crib, wickerwork”), from Proto-Indo-European *grebʰ-, *gerbʰ- (“bunch, bundle, tuft, clump”), from *ger- (“to turn, twist”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Kräbbe, Krääb, Krääf (“crib”), West Frisian krêbe (“crib”), Dutch krib (“crib, manger”), German Krippe (“rack, crib”), Danish krybbe (“crib”), Icelandic krubba (“crib”). Doublet of crèche. The sense of ‘stealing, taking notes, plagiarize’ seems to have developed out of the verb.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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