writer's cramp
1
7.5
- noun
- /ˈraɪtərz kræmp/
- Specialized
:
calambre del escritor
- Fortunately, there are a wealth of 'casual games' out there for those of us who want to chill out instead of getting writer's cramp from gripping our styluses so hard.
- getting writer's cramp
- case of writer's cramp
Examples
-
If he had, reasoned the court, "Rubin probably would be in the hospital with a severe case of writer's cramp... because some 270,000 such letters go out each year.
Academic text (1998) -
Kay, if it saves you any writer's cramp in the future, I'll help you out by letting you know I don't read your posts.
Blog text (29) -
A touch of the writer's cramp will soon sort you out.
-
I would have severe writer's cramp, for sure...
Blog text (28) -
Feels like a constant writer's cramp.
Blog text (1) -
I think that blogging was way more fun than having a writer's cramp.
Blog text (31) -
Writer's cramp."
-
He wrung his hand to show writer's cramp, then stuck the pen in the pocket of his jeans and headed for the door.
Fiction book (1999) -
But remember that, at the time of the execution of his will, Shakespeare was a dying man and, moreover, was apparently suffering from some nervous affection (writer's cramp, perhaps) that prevented him from writing legibly and, in fact, on this occasion caused his signature to break down deplorably.
Academic text (2016) -
After writing for hours, she developed uncomfortable writer's cramp in her fingers.
Synonyms
431
9.9
A sudden painful tight muscle in the neck or back
12
4.3
A quick, sudden movement of a muscle you cannot control, often in an eyelid
7
3.4
A sudden tight movement of a muscle that hurts or feels uncomfortable
Muscle spasms in the thumb and forefinger when writing with a pen or pencil
A painful tightness in the hand after doing the same movement too much, for example when typing or gaming
How Severe
Surface Forms
Morphology
writer's + cramp
The meaning is directly and compositionally built from 'writer' (a person who writes) + 'cramp' (a sudden involuntary muscle contraction); the possessive 'writer's' signals the cramp relates to the activity of writing. This is a straightforward noun + possessive construction found across languages, so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Writer's cramp comes from a simple picture: a writer who writes so long that a cramp makes the hand tight and painful. That's why it now means 'a painful tightening or spasm in the hand caused by long writing'.