Definition of "crimp" [crimp]

• To press or pinch into small regular folds or ridges: crimp a pie crust. (verb-transitive)
• To bend or mold (leather) into shape. (verb-transitive)
• To cause (hair) to form tight curls or waves. (verb-transitive)
• To have a hampering or obstructive effect on: Supplies of foreign oil were crimped by the embargo. (verb-transitive)
• The act of crimping. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "But they said the increased stability of the entire system would be worth any short-term crimp in lending."
• "A crimp was a contractor, a man paid so much a head for recruits, and Lieutenant Colonel Girdwood and Sir Henry Simmerson had turned the Second Battalion of the South Essex into just such a contractor!"
• "Feb. 9 Bloomberg -- Toyota Motor Corp., the world's largest carmaker, may trail Honda Motor Co. in profit for a third straight year as lingering consumer concerns over recalls crimp its recovery."