The Cambridge International Dictionary of Idioms (1998) includes entries for both "have/take a crack at" and "get a crack at"-the latter entry without a definition. 1934: ".To take a crack at something bigger." Cain, Postman, 29. 3 A try at some undertaking whether large or small. Likewise, Harold Wentworth & Stuart Flexner, Dictionary of American Slang (1960) has this:Ĭrack.
The oldest of these colloquialisms is have a shot at, alluding to firing a gun and first recorded in 1756 crack and go date from the 1830s, and whack from the late 1800s. For example, Let me have a crack at assembling it, or I had a shot at it but failed, or Dad thinks he can-let him have a go at it, or Dave had a whack at changing the tire, or Jane wants to take a crack at it. Make an attempt or have a turn at doing something. Have a crack at Also, get or have a go or shot or whack at take a crack at. I suspect that "at a crack" is closely connected to the idiomatic phrase "have a crack at," so let's start with that phrase.įrom Christine Ammer, American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms (1996):
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