Crazy

a. Forms: 6–7 crasy, 6–8 crasie, (6 craesie), 7–8 crazie, 7– crazy. [f. CRAZE v. or sb. + -Y.]

  1.  Full of cracks or flaws; damaged, impaired, unsound; liable to break or fall to pieces; frail, ‘shaky.’ (Now usually of ships, buildings, etc.)

1583.  Stubbes, Anat. Abus., I. (1879), 51. If Adolus with his blasts, or Neptune with his stormes chaunce to hit vppon the crasie bark.

1595.  Spenser, Col. Clout, 374. Or be their pipes untunable and craesie?

1612.  T. Taylor, Comm. Titus i. 16. As a crazie pitcher which is vnfit to hold water.

1748.  Anson’s Voy., I. x. 151. With a crazy ship.

1776.  Adam Smith, W. N., II. ii. I. 310. The house is crazy … and will not stand very long.

1844.  Dickens, Lett. (1880), I. 119. The court was full of crazy coaches.

1868.  Freeman, Norm. Conq. (1876), II. ix. 336. An old crazy ship.

  † 2.  Having the bodily health or constitution impaired; indisposed, ailing; diseased, sickly; broken down, frail, infirm. Obs.

1576.  Fleming, Panopl. Epist., 4. Remove not from the place where you be, sithence you are weake and crasie.

1591.  Shaks., 1 Hen. VI., III. ii. 89. Some better place, Fitter for sicknesse and for crasie age.

1611.  Speed, Hist. Gt. Brit., IX. xv. (1632), 782. The King somewhat crasie, and keeping his Chamber.

1712.  Steele, Spect., No. 426, ¶ 2. I find my Frame grown crasie with perpetual Toil and Meditation.

1807.  Med. Jrnl., XVII. 290. By a guarded mode of living … a very crazy constitution is frequently piloted into old age.

1847.  L. Hunt, Men, Women, & B., II. ii. 33. An indulgence conceded to his little crazy body.

  3.  fig. and transf. Unsound, impaired, ‘shaky’; frail, infirm.

1601.  Holland, Pliny, I. 3. Fraile and crasie mortall men, remembring wel their owne infirmitie.

1641.  Milton, Reform., II. (1851), 34. To keep up the floting carcas of a crazie and diseased Monarchy.

1647.  Bp. Hall, Rem. Wks. (1660), 29. Misdoubting what issue those his crasie evidences would find at the Common Law.

1784.  Cowper, Task, II. 60. The old And crazy earth has had her shaking fits More frequent.

  † b.  Broken down in estate; ruined, bankrupt.

1700.  T. Brown, trans. Fresny’s Amusem., 29. There sneaks a Hunger-starv’d Usurer in quest of a Crasie Citizen.

  4.  Of unsound mind; insane, mad, demented, ‘cracked.’ Often used by way of exaggeration in sense: Distracted or ‘mad’ with excitement, vehement desire, perplexity, etc.

1617.  J. Chamberlain, Lett., in Crt. & Times Jas. I., II. 19. He was noted to be crazy and distempered before.

1664.  Butler, Hud., II. Ep. Sidrophel, 2. ’Tis in vain To tamper with your crazy brain.

1732.  Franklin, Lett., Wks. 1887, I. 407. ‘Lord, child, are you crazy?’

1779.  Mrs. Thrale, in Mad. D’Arblay, Diary & Lett., May. Mr Murphy is crazy for your play … do pray let me run away with the first act.

1856.  Sir B. Brodie, Psychol. Inq., I. i. 24. Lord George Gordon, a crazy fanatic, led the London mob to burn down Newgate.

1873.  Dixon, Two Queens, IV. XIX. ii. 7. Linked in a marriage without love,… driving each other crazy with their mutual spite.

  b.  Of things, actions, etc.: Showing derangement of intellect; insane, mad.

1843.  Whittier, Cassandra Southwick, ix.

1859.  Sat. Rev., VII. 471/1. It is when vanity sets to work to build upon the foundation of ignorance that crazy theories are constructed.

1885.  Manch. Exam., 13 Oct., 5/1. The crazy wildness of his appeal.

  5.  Comb., as crazy-headed adj.; crazy ant (see quot.); crazy Betty (see quot.: cf. CRAYSE); crazy bone (U.S.), the ‘funny-bone’; crazy quilt (U.S.), a patchwork quilt made of pieces of stuff of all kinds in fantastic patterns or without any order; so crazy patchwork, crazy-work.

1885.  Lady Brassey, The Trades, 132. Another curious variety is appropriately called the *‘crazy ant.’ He always seems to be in a violent hurry,… moving forwards, backwards, and sideways in the most purposeless and insane manner.

1880.  Jefferies, Gt. Estate, 24. Where to find the first *‘crazy Betties.’… These are the marsh marigolds.

1880.  Webster, Supp., *Crazy-bone … so called on account of the intense pain produced when it receives a blow.

a. 1684.  R. Leighton, 3 Posth. Tracts (1708), 7. Such are for the most part silly, *Crazy-headed People.

1716.  J. Long, Assize Serm. Govt., 3. Crazy-headed people.

1885.  Harper’s Mag., March, 531/2. Alternate stripes of *‘crazy patchwork’ embroidered on crimson turcoman.

1821.  Blackw. Mag., IX. 61. The *crazy-pate banker.

1886.  von Finkelstein, in Pall Mall Gaz., 12 Nov., 6/2. What is generally called *‘crazy quilt’ in the States and patchwork in England.

1890.  H. S. Babcock, in Century Mag., May, 47/1. As uncertain in marking as the pattern of a crazy-quilt.