crab
noun/kræb/
/kræb/
- [countable] a sea creature with a hard shell, eight legs and two pincers (= curved and pointed arms for catching and holding things). Crabs move sideways (= towards the side) on land. see also hermit crabTopics Fish and shellfishb2
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- [uncountable] meat from a crab, used for food
- dressed crab
- crabs(informal) the condition caused by having lice (called crab lice) in the hair around the genitals
Word OriginOld English crabba, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch krabbe, and more distantly to Dutch kreeft and German Krebs; also to crab in the sense to grumble.
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