crank [OE] The mechanical crank is found in Old English cranc recorded in crancstæf, a weaver’s implement. The primary notion is ‘something bent together’ and it is related to crincan ‘to bend’, probably also the source of cringe [ME]. Crank [E17th] and cranky [L18th] meaning an eccentric or bad-tempered person are from a dialect word originally meaning ‘weak, in poor health’.