rack¹ /rak/

1. An instrument for stretching, esp an instrument of torture
2. An extreme pain, anxiety or doubt (figurative)
3. Stress, esp of weather
4. A framework, grating, shelf, etc on or in which articles are laid or set aside
5. A grating from which farm animals, etc may pull down fodder
6. A bar or framework as for chaining a prisoner (Spenser)
7. A bar with teeth to work into those of a wheel, pinion, cog, etc

1. To stretch or move forcibly or excessively
2. To strain
3. To wrest, overstrain, distort
4. To torture
5. To practise rapacity upon
6. To extort (Spenser)
7. To put in a rack
8. To separate (ore) by washing it on an inclined plane (mining)
9. To move or adjust by rack and pinion

racked adjective (also, non-standard, wracked)

1. Tortured, tormented
2. (in combination) denoting tortured or distressed by, as in disease-racked, etc

rackˈer noun

rackˈing noun and adjective

rack and pinion noun

A means of turning rotatory into linear or linear into rotatory motion by a toothed wheel engaging in a rack

rack price noun (N American)

The price at which a product is made available to a retailer or dealer, wholesale price

rack rail noun

A cogged rail, as on a rack-and-pinion railway

rack railway noun

A mountain railway with a rack in which a cogwheel on the locomotive works

rackˈ-rent noun

1. A rent stretched to the utmost annual value of the property rented, an exorbitant rent
2. A rack-renter

transitive verb

To subject to such rents

rackˈ-renter noun

A person who charges or pays rack-rent

rackˈwork noun

A mechanism with a rack

on the rack

1. Extremely anxious or distressed
2. (of skill, etc) stretched to limits

rack and manger

1. Wasteful abundance (esp in the phrase live at rack and manger)
2. Waste and destruction (perh from confusion with rack and ruin)

rack one's brains

To use one's memory or reasoning powers to the utmost

rack up

To accumulate points (in a score)

rack³ /rak/

To draw off from the lees

rack⁵ /rak/ (now esp US)

A horse's gait in which the legs at the same side move nearly together

To walk with such a gait

rackˈer noun

rack off (Aust inf)

To go away (often as imperative)

rack⁶ /rak/

1. Flying cloud (Shakespeare)
2. Driving mist
3. A track
4. A shallow ford (Scot)

To drift, to drive

• press offices
• press of sail
• pressor
• press proof
• press proofs
• press release
• press releases
• pressroom
• pressrooms
• press stud
• press studs
• press the button
• press-up
• press-ups
• pressure
• pressure altitude
• pressure cabin
• pressure cabins
• pressure-cook
• pressure-cooked
• pressure cooker
• pressure cookers
• pressure-cooking
• pressure-cooks
• pressured