Forms: α. 5 creuesse, -ez, -eys, krevys, 5–6 crev-, creues, -ys(e, 5–7 -is(e, -ice, 6 -yce, -iz, 6–7 -isse, creavis(e, 7 krevise; β. 6 creuysshe, 6–7 crev-, creuish(e, 7 creyvish, 7–8 creevish; γ. 6 crefysshe, 6–7 crefish, 7 creyfish, craifish, crea-fish, 7– cray-fish, crayfish; δ. 5 craveys, 6 crav-, craues, -ish, crafyshe, 6–8 crafish, (8 cra-fish), 7– craw-fish, crawfish. [ME. crevice, -visse, a. OF. crevice (13–15th c. in Littré); cf. crevis m., crevicel dim. in Godef.; in OF. also escrevisse, mod.F. écrevisse, Walloon grèvèse, Rouchi graviche (Littré); a. OHG. crebiȥ, MHG. krebeȥ, a derivative of stem *kraƀ- in krab-bo CRAB q.v.
In Southern ME. the second syllable was naturally confounded with vish (written viss in Ayenbite), ‘fish’; whence the corrupted forms under β and γ, and the later crey-, cray-fish. The variants in cra- go back to Anglo-Fr. when the stress was still on second syllable, and the first liable to vary between cre- and cra-; they are the origin of the modern craw-fish, now used chiefly in U.S.]
A. Illustration of forms.
α. a. 1400–50. Alexander, 3864. Creuesses.
c. 1430. Lydg., Min. Poems (Percy Soc.), 154. A krevys with his klawes longe.
1481–90. Howard Househ. Bks. (Roxb.), 84. For v. crevys ij. d.
c. 1490. Promp. Parv., 102 (MS. K). Creveys, fysshe [Pynson creues].
1513. Bk. Keruynge, in Babees Bk. (1868), 281. A creues, dyght hym thus.
1544. Phaër, Regim. Lyfe (1553), I iv a. Excepte it be a creuisse.
1570. B. Googe, Pop. Kingd., II. (1880), 2. Some pleasant River … full of creuis.
1612. trans. Benvenuto’s Passenger, I. ii. § 87. 163. Creauises are good for Hectickes.
1657. W. Coles, Adam in Eden, lviii. 111. They go into the water … to seek after Crevises.
1679. Plot, Staffordsh. (1686), 19. Lobsters … analogous to a Crevice.
1783. Ainsworth, Lat. Dict., II. *Carabus … a crab, cray-fish, or crevice.
β. 1555. Eden, Decades, 302. The flesshe of creuysshes.
1577. B. Googe, Heresbach’s Husb., IV. (1586), 173 b. Crevishes, Barbils, and Chevins.
1658. Rowland, trans. Moufet’s Theat. Ins., 1041. Crabs or river Crevish.
1783. [see B 1 b].
γ. 1555. Eden, Decades, 115. Full of crabbes or crefysshes.
1571. B. Googe, Heresbach’s Husb., II. (1586), 70. Take a good sort of Crefishes.
1597. Gerarde, II. ccli. Crayfish Woolfesbane.
1613–6. W. Browne, Brit. Past., II. iii. From his lurking hole Had pull’d the Cray-fish.
1683. Phil. Trans., XIII. 269. The Crefish are some of them red.
1756. Nugent, Gr. Tour, Germ., II. 443. The largest crayfish in Europe.
1880. Huxley (title), The Cray-fish.
δ. 1478. Botoner, Itin. (1778), 291. Homines possunt piscare … de craveys.
1526. Househ. Exp. Sir T. Le Strange (Add. MS. 27448, f. 27 b). A craves and ij crabbes.
1577. Harrison, England, III. x. (1878), II. 21. The lobstar, crafish [1587 or crevis], and the crab.
1565–73. Cooper, Thesaurus, s.v. Crusta, Pilles of certain fishes, as of Crauishes.
1624. Capt. Smith, Virginia, V. 175. They caught … great craw-fishes.
1626. Bacon, Sylva (1677), § 45. The Flesh of the Crab or Crafish.
1747. Wesley, Prim. Physic. (1762), 82. Ashes of Crawfish.
1796. Mrs. Glasse, Cookery, v. 86. A ragoo of crawfish.
1867. F. Francis, Angling, i. (1880), 48. The tail of a craw-fish is held to be a powerful incantation for the biggest chub.
1883. J. A. Henshall, in Century Mag., 378/2. He then turned over the stones in the creek until he obtained a dozen large craw-fish.
B. Signification.
† 1. Formerly, like Ger. krebs, a general name for all the larger edible crustacea. Obs.
a. 1400–50. Alexander, 3864. Þan comes þare-out creuesses of manykins hewis.
1575. Laneham, Lett. (1871), 9. Fresh Herring, Oisters, Samon, Creuis, and such like.
1656. W. D., trans., Comenius’ Gate Lat. Unl., ¶ 159. Crevices are shelled swimmers, with ten feet, and two claws: among which are huge Lobsters of three cubits; round Crabs; Craw-fish, little Lobsters.
† b. spec. applied to the crab. Obs.
1509. Barclay, Shyp of Folys (1874), I. 271. On the Crauys he styll shall bacwarde ryde.
1546. Phaër, Bk. Childr. (1553), S vj a. The canker … spreadeth it selfe abrode, like the fete of a creues, called in latin cancer.
1579. Tomson, Calvin’s Serm. Tim., 909/1. To say, walk on, behaue your selues manfully: and go cleane kam our selues like Creuises.
1783. Ainsworth, Lat. Dict. (Morrell), I. Crevis, or crevish, cancer.
† 2. A general name for large crustacea other than crabs. The name Sea crayfish included the lobster and its allies: cf. 3 b. Obs. or arch.
c. 1440. Anc. Cookery, in Househ. Ord. (1790), 449. Crabbes and crevyse and lamprons in lentyne.
c. 1460. J. Russell, Bk. Nurture, 614, in Babees Bk. (1868), 159. The bak of þe Crevise, þus he must be sted: array hym as ye dothe þe crabbe.
1526. Ord. Hen. VIII., in Househ. Ord. (1790), 182. Perches, Creviz, Crabs. 1 mess 8d.
c. 1532. Dewes, Introd. Fr., in Palsgr., 913. Crevyce of the see, houmars.
1575. Appius & Virginia, in Hazl., Dodsley, IV. 118. Yea, but what am I?… A crab or a crevis, a crane or a cockerel?
1624. Capt. Smith, Virginia, II. 28. Crabs, Shrimps, Crevises, Oysters.
3. In current use: a. gen. A fresh-water crustacean, Astacus fluviatilis (River or Fresh-water Crayfish, crevice d’eau douce), resembling a small lobster, found in rivers and brooks. Also applied to other species of Astacus and of the allied American genus Cambarus, e.g., the blind crawfish of the Mammoth Cave of Kentucky (C. pellucidus).
c. 1460. J. Russell, Bk. Nurture, 618, in Babees Bk., 159. Of Crevis dewe douz.
1533. Elyot, Cast. Helthe (1541), 15 a. Shell fyshe, excepte crevyse deau doulce.
1577. Harrison, England, III. x. (1878), II. 21. The little crafishes … taken … plentifullie in our fresh riuers.
1578. Lyte, Dodoens, II. xli. 60. The tayle of a Lobster, or river Creuis. Ibid., III. lxxviii. 426. A freshwater Creauis.
1601. Holland, Pliny, II. 443. Craifishes of the riuer … be diureticall.
a. 1661. Fuller, Worthies, III. (1662), 223. This Sir Christopher is also memorable for stocking the river Yower … with Crevishes.
1837. M. Donovan, Dom. Econ., II. 213. The Cray-fish or Craw-fish is an inhabitant of fresh water, and indeed only of the purest water.
1880. Huxley, Crayfish, i. 16. There are a number of kinds of Cray-fish … but they bear the common surname of Astacus. Ibid., 31. Crayfishes of a year old are … two inches long.
b. With London fishmongers and generally on the sea-coast of Great Britain: The Spiny Lobster, Palinurus vulgaris, the Langouste of the French.
1748. Anson’s Voy., II. i. 125. This was sea cra-fish; they generally weighed eight or nine pounds apiece.
1770. Wesley, Wisd. God in Creation (1809), I. 275. The crab, the cray-fish, and many other animals are seen to devour them [muscles].
1840. Penny Cycl., XVII. 167. Palinurus vulgaris. It is the common Sea-crawfish of the shops, Langouste of the French.
1862. Ansted, Channel Isl., IV. xxii. (1865), 508. Crayfish are very fine, but not thought equal to lobsters in the London market. Note. This crustacean is … the spiny lobster (Palinurus vulgaris) of naturalists, and attains a length of 18 inches.
1865. Gosse, Land & Sea (1874), 81. The sea cray-fish, or thorny lobster.
4. attrib., as crayfish broth, soup; † crevishe eyes = CRAB’S EYES; † crevis fish = CRAYFISH.
1599. A. M., trans. Gabelhouer’s Bk. Physicke, 125/1. Take 6 or 7 Pickerells Eyes … and as manye Crevishe eyes … contunde all these thinges very small.
1688. R. Holme, Armoury, 338/1. A Crevice, or a Crefish, or as some write it, a Crevis Fish … a Species of the Lobster, but of a lesser size.
1702. J. Purcell, Cholick, Index, Crafish Broths and Garlick recommended.
1719. D’Urfey, Pills, I. 268. All must stoop to Crawfish Soop.
