Definition

1. Noun:

   • A baby's bed with high sides: A small bed for a baby or young child, typically having barred or slatted sides to prevent the child from falling out.
   • A small building or structure for storage: A bin, rack, or small structure used for storing grain, animal feed, or other materials.
   • A literal translation or notes used illicitly: A translation or set of notes used, often dishonestly, to aid in understanding a foreign language text or to cheat in an examination.
   • A house or dwelling (informal): A place where one lives, often implying a small or modest home.
   • The cards discarded in cribbage: In the card game cribbage, the set of cards discarded by the players and used by the dealer.

2. Verb:

   • To plagiarize or copy dishonestly: To use someone else's work or ideas without permission or proper acknowledgment, especially in an academic context.
   • To confine or enclose: To place or hold something in a confined space.
   • To line or support with timber: To reinforce a structure, such as a mine shaft or well, with a framework of wood.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • The baby slept soundly in her crib. (The infant rested peacefully in her small, enclosed bed.)
  • They filled the crib with corn for the winter. (They loaded the storage bin with maize to last the cold season.)
  • The student was caught using a crib during the Latin exam. (The pupil was discovered consulting an illicit translation aid during the test.)
  • He's gone back to his crib for the night. (He has returned to his residence to sleep.)

• Verb:

  • The student cribbed the entire essay from a website. (The pupil copied the whole composition from an online source.)
  • The animals were cribbed in a small pen. (The creatures were confined within a limited enclosure.)
  • The miners cribbed the shaft to prevent a collapse. (The workers reinforced the vertical tunnel with a wooden framework.)

Advanced Usage

• "to crack a crib" (archaic slang): To break into a house to steal.
  • The thieves planned to crack a crib in the wealthy neighborhood. (The burglars intended to forcibly enter a home in the affluent area.)

Variants and Related Words

• Cribbage (n): A card game for two to four players, in which the objective is to form various counting combinations; the term 'crib' in this game refers to the extra hand formed from discards.
• Cribwork (n): A construction of interlocking logs or timbers used in foundations or retaining walls.

Synonyms

• Noun (baby bed): Cot, bassinet.
• Noun (storage): Bin, bunker, granary.
• Verb (plagiarize): Plagiarize, copy, pirate.

Related Phrasal Verbs / Constructions

• Crib from: To copy from a source, usually secretly.
  • He was accused of cribbing from his classmate's notes. (He was charged with secretly copying from his fellow student's written material.)

Related Idioms

• "There's no room to swing a cat" (often used about a small space like a crib): A space is very small or cramped.
  • His new apartment is so tiny, there's no room to swing a cat. (His new flat is extremely small and confined.)

Noun

1. a card game (usually for two players) in which each player is dealt six cards and discards one or two
2. the cards discarded by players at cribbage
3. a bin or granary for storing grains
4. a literal translation used in studying a foreign language (often used illicitly)
5. baby bed with high sides made of slats

Verb

1. line with beams or planks
   • crib a construction hole
2. take unauthorized (intellectual material)
3. use a crib, as in an exam