cradle

Definitions

1. noun

   A bed or cot for a baby, oscillating on rockers or swinging on pivots.

   Examples

   • No sooner was I crept out of my cradle / But I was made a king, at nine months old.
   • the cradle that received thee at thy birth
2. noun

   The place of origin, or in which anything is nurtured or protected in the earlier period of existence.

   Examples

   • a cradle of crime
   • the cradle of liberty
3. noun

   Infancy, or very early life.

   Examples

   • from the cradle to the grave
   • from their cradles bred together
4. noun

   An implement consisting of a broad scythe for cutting grain, with a set of long fingers parallel to the scythe, designed to receive the grain, and to lay it evenly in a swath.

5. noun

   A tool used in mezzotint engraving, which, by a rocking motion, raises burrs on the surface of the plate, so as to prepare the ground.

6. noun

   A framework of timbers, or iron bars, moving upon ways or rollers, used to support, lift, or carry ships or other vessels, heavy guns, etc., as up an inclined plane, or across a strip of land, or in launching a ship.

7. noun

   A case for a broken or dislocated limb.

8. noun

   A frame to keep the bedclothes from contact with the sensitive parts of an injured person.

9. noun

   A machine on rockers, used in washing out auriferous earth.

   Example

   • Rough men brought pickle bottles full of nuggets. Mysterious dirty-looking calico bags were opened, disclosing small quantities of water-worn flaky gold, which had been washed out of the beds of rivers with a cradle.
   ≈rocker
10. noun

    A suspended scaffold used in shafts.