1. Large long-necked wading bird of marshes and plains in many parts of the world
   "A pair of cranes performed an elaborate mating dance"
    
2. A tall mechanical lifting device, often used for lifting heavy loads for industrial or construction purposes
   "The construction site had a massive crane to hoist steel beams into place"

1. Stretch (the neck) so as to see better
   "The women craned their necks to see the President drive by";
   - stretch out

1. A small constellation in the Southern Hemisphere near Phoenix
   - Grus
    
2. United States writer (1871-1900)
   - Stephen Crane
    
3. United States poet (1899-1932)
   - Hart Crane, Harold Hart Crane

Derived forms: craned, cranes, craning

Type of: author, constellation, extend, lifting device, poet, stretch, wader, wading bird, writer

Part of: family Gruidae, Gruidae

Encyclopedia: Crane, Randy