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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
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I read a sentence today that said something like, "it's so cramped, we'll all be crammed in there", which of course got me to thinking whether "cramp" and "cram" were from the same root. But no. Cram, the verb, meaning to put something somewhere so that the space is completely filled, is from ME crammen, OE crammian to stuff, akin to crimman to put in. Cramped, the adjective, meaning constricted in size, is from cramp, from ME crampe < OF < Gmc; c. MD crampe, OS krampo, OHG krampfo. My investigation lead me to learn that "cramp" is also the name of a kind of clamp, and that clamp is from ME (n.) < MD clampe clamp, cleat; c. MLG klampe. Also, that "cram" in the sense of stuffing as much knowledge as possible into a brain just before an exam dates back 200 years. So, I've no questions, but I wasn't going to look that stuff up without telling you about it. Now, talk amongst yourselves. 
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Joined: Jun 2002
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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cramp, cleat, like crampon?
formerly known as etaoin...
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Joined: Jun 2006
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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I regocnize the word 'krimpen' in 'cramp'. Reduce in seize.
And when a muscle contracts causing pain it's 'kramp'.
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,773 |
A painful muscle contraction is "cramp" in English. BranShea, does "kramp" have additional meanings in Dutch?
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Joined: Aug 2002
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Aug 2002
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Does crimp fit into this somewhere?
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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does "kramp" have additional meanings in Dutch? No. But the adjective 'krampachtig' is also used in a figurative way. Like : a 'krampachtige' effort to appear honest. I do not think you would say : a 'spasmodic effort to appear honest'. (would you? I would like to know)
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Joined: Apr 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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cramped is used figuratively; e.g., her speech was cramped and stiff in style.
-joe (crampt OP) friday
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
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crimp is from ME crympen, OE gecrympan to curl, deriv. of crump crooked
It does make one wonder whether the "cr**p**" arrangment meant "bent stick" or some such to the first speakers.
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Joined: Oct 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Oct 2000
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crimp is still used to mean curly/curled hair..
at least it was in my childhood home, and i've used it that way..
Kinky is naturally curly hair, crimped, is set hair.
(Put nicely, kinky hair is "lambs wool" hair.. (especially if blond) its a common feature in the family.. (me? i need to crimp my hair, or it hangs, (or so my mother said) in rats tails..)
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