rack
/ɹæk/ noun, verb
Also a form of arak
Forms racks racking racked rackest rackedst racketh
- noun A series of one or more shelves, stacked one above the other.
- noun Any of various kinds of frame for holding luggage or other objects on a vehicle or vessel.
- noun (historical) A device, incorporating a ratchet, used to torture victims by stretching them beyond their natural limits.
- noun (nautical) A piece or frame of wood, having several sheaves, through which the running rigging passes.
- noun (slang, especially nautical) A bunk.
- noun (nautical, by extension, slang, uncountable) Sleep.
- noun A distaff.
- noun (mechanical engineering, rail transport) A bar with teeth on its face or edge, to work with those of a gearwheel, pinion, or worm, which is to drive or be driven by it.
- verb To place in or hang on a rack.
- verb To torture (someone) on the rack.
- verb To cause (someone) to suffer pain.
- verb (figurative) To stretch or strain; to harass, or oppress by extortion.
- verb (obsolete, occult) To alternately concatenate two words to magical effect.
- verb (billiards, snooker, pool) To put the balls into the triangular rack and set them in place on the table.
- verb (slang, transitive) To strike in the testicles.
- verb (slang) To shoplift (especially in a megastore), often by taking off of a rack. “He racked three boxes of gum!”
- verb To drive; move; go forward rapidly; stir.
- verb To fly, as vapour or broken clouds.
- noun Thin, flying, broken clouds, or any portion of floating vapour in the sky.
- verb (brewing) To clarify, and thereby deter further fermentation of, beer, wine or cider by draining or siphoning it from the dregs.
Synonyms
luggage rack rack block assets babylons balloons baps badonkers bangers bazongas bazookas bazoombas bazooms bewbs bobas booba boobage boobs boobers boobies boosies wrack wheel stand single-foot extort squeeze gouge wring scud torment
Etymology
From Middle English rakke, rekke, from Middle Dutch rac, recke, rec (Dutch rek), see rekken.
From Old English reċċan (“to stretch out, extend”).
From Middle English reken, from Old Norse reka (“to be drifted, tost”)
The noun is from Middle English rak, rakke, from Middle English rek (“drift; thing tossed ashore; jetsam”), from the verb.
Inherited from Middle English rakken.
Webster’s 1913
- noun Same as Arrack.
- noun The neck and spine of a fore quarter of veal or mutton.
- noun A wreck; destruction. [Obs., except in a few phrases.] Rack and ruin, destruction; utter ruin. [Colloq.] -- To go to rack, to perish; to be destroyed. [Colloq.] "All goes to rack." Pepys.
- noun Thin, flying, broken clouds, or any portion of floating vapor in the sky. Shak.
Etymology [AS. hracca neck, hinder part of the head; cf. AS. hraca throat, G. rachen throat, E. retch.]
Etymology [See Wreck.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “rack”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details