* Alphabetical Order: Words in a dictionary are listed alphabetically.
* "C" Words: We know all three words start with the letter "C".
* Comparing Letters:
* "Crate" comes before "Cringe" because "r" comes before "i" in the alphabet.
* "Cringe" comes before "Crib" because "i" comes before "r" in the alphabet.
Therefore, "Cringe" would be in the middle of "Crate" and "Crib" in a dictionary.