%crabb%

n. One who catches crabs. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. The act or art of catching crabs. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Falconry) The fighting of hawks with each other. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Woolen Manuf.) A process of scouring cloth between rolls in a machine. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Somewhat sour or cross. [ 1913 Webster ]

The whips of the most crabbish Satyristes. Decker. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Crabbed; difficult, or perplexing. “Persius is crabby, because ancient.” Marston. [ 1913 Webster ]

[ CF. Scramble. ] A Lenten dish, composed of eggs boiled hard, chopped, and seasoned with butter, salt, and pepper. Halliwell. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The act of scrabbling; a moving upon the hands and knees; a scramble; also, a scribble. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Scrabbled p. pr. & vb. n. Scrabbling ] [ Freq. of scrape. Cf. Scramble, Scrawl, v. t. ] 1. To scrape, paw, or scratch with the hands; to proceed by clawing with the hands and feet; to scramble; as, to scrabble up a cliff or a tree. [ 1913 Webster ]

Now after a while Little-faith came to himself, and getting up made shift to scrabble on his way. Bunyan. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To make irregular, crooked, or unmeaning marks; to scribble; to scrawl. [ 1913 Webster ]

David . . . scrabbled on the doors of the gate. 1. Sam. xxi. 13. [ 1913 Webster ]