crisp

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   brief and to the point

   I wasted no time and sent a crisp email.

2. 2
   adj

   of something seen or heard clearly defined

   The new radio produced a crisp tone.

3. 3
   adj

   in small tight curls, of hair

   The baby had beautiful crisp blond hair.

4. 4
   adj

   pleasingly firm and fresh

   My salad was full of crisp lettuce.

5. 5
   adj

   pleasantly cold and invigorating

   Crisp clear nights are my favourite.

6. 6
   adj

   tender and brittle

   The crisp leaves crackled underfoot.

7. 7
   noun

   a thin crisp slice of potato fried in deep fat

   I had a bag of crisps for lunch.

8. 8
   verb

   to make brown and crisp by heating

   I crisped the kale in the oven.

Etymology

The adjective is derived partly from the following: * Etymology 1, adjective sense 1: Middle English crisp (“curly, wavy”), from Old English crisp (“curly”), from Latin crispus (“of hair: crimped, curly”), possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kris-, from *(s)ker- (“to bend; to turn”). * Etymology 1, adjective sense 2: from the above, and probably also onomatopoeic, representing a crinkling or crunching sound. Doublet of crape and crepe. Adjective etymology 1, adjective sense 2.2.3 (“of air, weather, etc.: cool and dry”) is transferred from a description of frost or snow as “crisp”, th…