CROTCHETS

Noun

crotchets

plural of crotchet

Source: Wiktionary


CROTCHET

Crotch"et (krch"t; 224), n. Etym: [F. crochet, prop., a little hook, a dim. from the same source as croc hook. See Crook, and cf. Crochet, Crocket, Crosier.]

1. A forked support; a crotch. The crotchets of their cot in columns rise. Dryden.

2. (Mus.)

Definition: A time note, with a stem, having one fourth the value of a semibreve, one half that of a minim, and twice that of a quaver; a quarter note.

3. (Fort.)

Definition: An indentation in the glacis of the covered way, at a point where a traverse is placed.

4. (Mil.)

Definition: The arrangement of a body of troops, either forward or rearward, so as to form a line nearly perpendicular to the general line of battle.

5. (Print.)

Definition: A bracket. See Bracket.

6. (Med.)

Definition: An instrument of a hooked form, used in certain cases in the extraction of a fetus. Dunglison.

7. A perverse fancy; a whim which takes possession of the mind; a conceit. He ruined himself and all that trusted in him by crotchets that he could never explain to any rational man. De Quincey.

Crotch"et, v. i.

Definition: To play music in measured time. [Obs.] Donne.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

4 June 2025

LEND

(verb) bestow a quality on; “Her presence lends a certain cachet to the company”; “The music added a lot to the play”; “She brings a special atmosphere to our meetings”; “This adds a light note to the program”


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