# craft

Pronunciation: US say "KRAFT" /kɹæft/; UK say "KRAHFT" /kɹɑːft/

## Verb

1. To make or develop something with skill and care, often by hand.
   - Simple: To make something carefully and with skill.
   - _Lawmakers met for weeks to craft a compromise bill._
   - _The author carefully crafted each chapter of the novel._
6. Especially in video games, to make a new object, such as a weapon, piece of armor, or potion, by putting together materials or ingredients that have been gathered.
   - Simple: To combine items in a game to make a new one.
   - _You can craft a healing potion from herbs and water._
   - _Players craft weapons by gathering rare ore and wood._

## Noun

2. Objects produced by hand, typically ornamental pieces or useful goods for the home, such as pottery, baskets, or woven textiles.
   - Simple: Things made by hand, like home or decorative objects.
3. A branch of skilled work or trade, especially one needing manual dexterity or artistic skill, such as pottery or carpentry.
   - Simple: A type of skilled work, often done by hand, that needs special training.
   - _Woodworking is a craft that takes years to master._
   - _She learned the craft of bookbinding from her grandmother._
4. Skill or artistry, especially the skill needed for a particular profession.
   - Simple: Skill at doing something, especially in a job.
   - _The novel is written with remarkable craft._
   - _After twenty years on stage, the actor still works every day to perfect his craft._
5. A boat, ship, aircraft, or spacecraft, especially a small boat.
   - Simple: A boat, plane or spaceship.
   - _Mission control lost contact with the craft shortly after it entered orbit._
   - _The harbor patrol ordered all craft, from sailboats to seaplanes, to stay out of the channel during the storm._
8. Cleverness in planning or managing things, especially cunning or deceit.
   - Simple: Clever skill at getting what you want, often by tricking people.
   - _The swindler relied on craft rather than force to part investors from their savings._
   - _Through patient craft and well-placed rumors, she turned the council against its own leader._

## Adjective

7. Produced in limited quantities by an independent maker following traditional methods, most often said of beer or spirits.
   - Simple: Made in small amounts by a small, independent maker in the old way, usually said of beer or strong drinks.
   - _Their craft stout sold out within an hour of the beer festival opening._
   - _The bar's menu lists a dozen craft whiskeys from small distilleries in Kentucky._

## Noun

9. A made thing regarded as a work or product of art; the finished artifact itself. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A made object that is a finished work of art.
10. Occult art; magic practiced as a hidden skill or power. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Magic, or the use of secret, magical powers.
11. A device or means to an end; especially a magical device, a spell or enchantment. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A clever means or trick, or a magic spell.
12. Scholarly learning; a branch of knowledge or science, especially one of the seven liberal arts taught in medieval universities. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A branch of learning or study, like one of the old school subjects.
13. Bodily strength; power, might, or force. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Great physical strength, power, or force.

## Other meanings

- (noun) A trade or profession as embodied in its practitioners collectively; the members of a handicraft as a body, or their guild or association.
- (noun) A woman regarded figuratively as a vessel, as one might speak admiringly of a trim, well-built craft.
- (noun) Implements used for catching fish, such as nets, lines, or hooks; in modern use chiefly the gear of whaling, like harpoons and hand-lances.

## Origin

From Middle English craft ("strength, skill"), from Old English cræft, going back through Proto-West Germanic *kraftu to Proto-Germanic *kraftuz ("strength, power"); its further origin is obscure. It is related to German Kraft and Danish kraft, both meaning "strength, power, force."

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/craft (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).