: any of a family (Gryllidae) of leaping orthopteran insects noted for the chirping notes produced by the male by rubbing together specially modified parts of the forewings
2
crickets: a conspicuous lack of response : silence
At one point I asked him a question and took a long sip of my drink to allow him a moment to pose the question back to me. It was crickets … Silence.—The Star
And yet, nothing. Crickets. Silence.—Kurt Bardella
You post day in and day out hoping to see the social side of social media start to happen. Sometimes, a like or two will pop up, but most of the time, you hear crickets. It's disheartening.—Jordan Kasteler
3
: a low wooden footstool
4
: a small metal toy or signaling device that makes a sharp click or snap when pressed
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
The tournament culminated in a nail-biting final where India triumphed over New Zealand, delivering eye-popping metrics that underscore the platform’s dominance in the world’s largest cricket market.—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 13 Mar. 2025 The Married at First Sight Australia relationship experts are former professional cricket player and clinical psychologist John Aiken, psychologist Mel Schilling, and sexologist Alessandra Rampolla.—Jason Pham, StyleCaster, 10 Mar. 2025
Verb
Sports, especially cricket, and local drama and romance productions lead the consumption of premium streaming.—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 19 Sep. 2024 Khan, who captained Pakistan to cricket World Cup glory in 1992 and entered politics four years later, rose to power on a ticket of anti-corruption.—Sophia Saifi, CNN, 6 Feb. 2024 See All Example Sentences for cricket
Word History
Etymology
Noun (1)
Middle English criket, from Anglo-French, of imitative origin
Noun (2)
Middle French criquet goal stake in a bowling game
Share