Illustration of crane
- crane 1
1
: any of a family (Gruidae of the order Gruiformes) of tall wading birds superficially resembling the herons but structurally more nearly related to the rails
2
: any of several herons
3
: an often horizontal projection swinging about a vertical axis: such as
a
: a machine for raising, shifting, and lowering heavy weights by means of a projecting swinging arm or with the hoisting apparatus supported on an overhead track
b
: an iron arm in a fireplace for supporting kettles
c
: a boom for holding a movie or television camera
craned; craning
1
: to raise or lift by or as if by a crane
2
: to stretch toward an object of attention
craning her neck to get a better view
1
: to stretch one's neck toward an object of attention
I craned out of the window of my compartment …—
Webb Waldron
Webb Waldron2
: hesitate
Examples of crane in a Sentence
Verb
We craned our necks toward the stage.
craned her head to see the roof
Recent Examples on the Web
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 11 Feb. 2026
Though the coaster is still under construction, a crane recently put the last piece of the steel loop in place.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 10 Feb. 2026
Kathryn O’Shea-Evans, Robb Report, 18 Jan. 2026
Some of the jurors craned their necks to see the photos, while others covered their mouths or lifted tissues to wipe their eyes.
—Peter Charalambous, ABC News, 9 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for crane
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
The 130,000-square-foot facility on Cape Canaveral Space Force Station will include eight separate lab spaces, nine heavy-lift cranes, a backup generator, and administrative and other support spaces.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 11 Feb. 2026
Though the coaster is still under construction, a crane recently put the last piece of the steel loop in place.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 10 Feb. 2026
Verb
Take the spiral staircase, which was fabricated off-site from solid steel and craned into place in one piece before the roof was constructed.
—Kathryn O’Shea-Evans, Robb Report, 18 Jan. 2026
Some of the jurors craned their necks to see the photos, while others covered their mouths or lifted tissues to wipe their eyes.
—Peter Charalambous, ABC News, 9 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for crane
Cite this Entry
“Crane.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crane. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
crane
1 of 2 noun1
: any of a family of tall wading birds related to the rails
2
: any of several herons
3
a
: a machine with a swinging arm for lifting and carrying heavy weights
b
: a mechanical arm that swings freely from a center and is used to support or carry a weight
crane
2 of 2 verb
craned; craning
1
: to raise or lift by or as if by a crane
2
: to stretch out one's neck to see better
Biographical Definition
Crane
2 of 3biographical name (2)
Stephen 1871–1900 American writer
Crane
3 of 3biographical name (3)
Walter 1845–1915 English artist
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
