1. One who or that which crushes.
1598. Florio, Premitore, a crusher.
1611. Cotgr., Escacheur, a squasher; a beater, or crusher of things flat.
1662. J. Sparrow, trans. Behme’s Rem. Wks., Apol. conc. Perfection, 8. The Crusher or bruiser of the Serpent.
1859. Sala, Tw. round Clock (1861), 62. Crushers of walnuts with silver nut-crackers.
1885. C. F. Holder, Marvels Anim. Life, 191. The Port Jackson shark … has crushers instead of teeth.
b. spec. One whose trade is to crush some article for economic purposes.
1794. Hull Advertiser, 9 Aug., 3/4. The Crushers of Rape-seed continue to buy this article very freely.
1841. Penny Cycl., XIX. 300/2. Rape…. The seed … is then sold to the crushers, who express the oil.
1884. Law Rep. 13 Q. Bench Div. 469. Seed crushers and oil refiners.
c. A machine for crushing seed, ore, quartz, etc.
1825. J. Nicholson, Operat. Mechanic, 160. For breaking malt, beans, &c. one crusher only is wanted.
1879. Atcherley, Trip Boërland, 172. Mr. Armfield’s crusher was in full work.
2. colloq. Something that overwhelms or overpowers. Cf. stunner.
1840. Dickens, Old C. Shop, l. It’s Destiny, and mine’s a crusher!
1849. Thackeray, Pendennis, iv. ‘She is a crusher, ain’t she now?’
1884. Chr. Commonwealth, 6 Nov., 53/5. The decision was a crusher on Dr. Phin.
3. An apparatus for recording the pressure exerted on a gun by a charge of powder; also attrib. as in crusher-gauge, -plug.
1871. Standard, 19 Jan., 6/2. A ‘crusher,’ or small apparatus exposing a copper disc to the pressure over a given surface of the pent-up gases, was inserted in the rear of the 700-pounder bolts.
1871. Noble & Abel, in Phil. Trans., CLXV. 140. A slight escape of gas past the crusher-gauge.
4. slang. A policeman.
1841. Punch, II. 137. There is not one crusher who is proof against the waistcoat pocket.
1851. Mayhew, Lond. Labour, I. 25/2. ‘The blessed crushers is everywhere,’ shouted one.
