🤪 Oddly 😠 Irritably 🚗 Unsteadily

crankily

7.4

In an unsteady, irregular way

adverb
/ˈkræŋkɪli/

: de manera irregular

The engine ran crankily on cold mornings, making strange noises before warming up.

Examples

After years of use, the old printer now works crankily and often jams.
The elevator moved crankily between floors, causing passengers to feel uneasy.
The old engine started crankily before finally running smoothly.
She turned the key crankily in the ignition.
The elevator moved crankily between floors, shaking and making loud noises.
After years of use, the old printer now works crankily, often producing faded prints.
The engine started crankily, sputtering before finally settling into a steady hum.

Synonyms

jerkily

vscrankily

1 5.2

With sudden, uneven movements that are not smooth

is irregular and unsteady without sudden sharp stops

bumpily

vscrankily

4.9

In a not smooth way that makes movement uneven

is irregular and unsteady from internal malfunction rather than surface roughness

bumpity

vscrankily

Informal

7.7

Rough and uneven so you feel small jolts

is irregular and unsteady but not specifically caused by many jolts

Antonyms

smoothly

173 2.3

In an easy, calm way without problems or embarrassment

How Smoothly

smoothly

173 2.3

crankily

7.4

irregularly

4 4.2

erratically

13 6.4

Surface Forms

crankily positive

crankier comparative

crankiest superlative

Morphology

crankily = cranky (semi-transparent) = cranky + ly

The sense applied to machines ('not functioning smoothly') is a metaphorical extension of human temperament, so the relation is inferable but less direct for learners.

Etymology

Crankily for machines comes from the crank, the bent handle that makes motion start and stop, so when a crank turns unevenly something moves 'not smoothly'. That's why crankily can mean 'in an irregular, unsteady way'.