crank

{{11}}crank (n.) O.E. cranc- preserved in crancstæf "a weaver's instrument," crencestre "female weaver, spinster," from P.Gmc. base *krank-, and related to crincan "to bend, yield." English retains the literal sense of the ancient root, while German and Dutch krank "sick," formerly "weak, small," is a figurative use.

The sense of "an eccentric person," especially one who is irrationally fixated, is first recorded 1833, said to be from the crank of a barrel organ, which makes it play the same tune over and over; but more likely a back formation from CRANKY (Cf. cranky), and evolving from earlier senses of crank as "a twist or fanciful turn of speech" (1590s) or "inaccessible hole or crevice" (1560s). Meaning "methamphetamine" attested by 1989.

{{12}}crank (v.) 1590s, "to zig-zag," from CRANK (Cf. crank) (n.). Meaning "to turn a crank" is first attested 1908, with reference to automobile engines.