buckle
Americannoun
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buckles
plural
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a clasp consisting of a rectangular or curved rim with one or more movable tongues, fixed to one end of a belt or strap, used for fastening to the other end of the same strap or to another strap.
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any similar contrivance used for such purposes.
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an ornament of metal, beads, etc., of similar appearance.
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a bend, bulge, or kink, as in a board or saw blade.
verb (used with object)
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buckles,
present (3rd person singular)
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buckled,
past participle, past
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buckling
present participle
-
to fasten with a buckle or buckles.
Buckle your seat belt.
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to shrivel, by applying heat or pressure; bend; curl.
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to prepare (oneself ) for action; apply (oneself ) vigorously to something.
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to bend, warp, or cause to give way suddenly, as with heat or pressure.
verb (used without object)
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buckles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
buckled,
past participle, past
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buckling
present participle
-
to close or fasten with a buckle.
Grandmother always wore shoes that buckled.
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to prepare oneself or apply oneself.
The student buckled to the lesson.
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to bend, warp, bulge, or collapse.
The bridge buckled in the storm.
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to yield, surrender, or give way to another (often followed byunder ).
She refused to take the medicine, but buckled under when the doctor told her to.
verb phrase
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buckle up to fasten one's belt, seat belt, or buckles.
She won't start the car until we've all buckled up.
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buckle down to set to work with vigor; concentrate on one's work.
He was by nature a daydreamer and found it hard to buckle down.
noun
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a clasp for fastening together two loose ends, esp of a belt or strap, usually consisting of a frame with an attached movable prong
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an ornamental representation of a buckle, as on a shoe
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a kink, bulge, or other distortion
a buckle in a railway track
verb
-
to fasten or be fastened with a buckle
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to bend or cause to bend out of shape, esp as a result of pressure or heat
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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bucklesimple
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bucklessimple
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have buckledperfect
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has buckledperfect
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am bucklingprogressive
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are bucklingprogressive
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is bucklingprogressive
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have been bucklingperfect progressive
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has been bucklingperfect progressive
Past
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buckledsimple
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had buckledperfect
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was bucklingprogressive
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were bucklingprogressive
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had been bucklingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of buckle
1300–50; Middle English bocle < Anglo-French bo ( u ) cle, bucle < Latin buc ( c ) ula cheekpiece (of a helmet), strip of wood, etc., resembling a cheekpiece, equivalent to bucc ( a ) cheek + -ula -ule
Explanation
A buckle is a clasp or fastener, such as the one on the end of a belt. In the old days, not only belts but also shoes had buckles. When you fasten your belt buckle, you can say you buckle it — you also buckle your seat belt and buckle a kid's bike helmet under his chin. When the ground buckles during an earthquake, it folds or bends out of shape, and when your knees buckle, you could fall. You might also buckle under pressure or stress. The Latin root word is buccula, "cheek strap of a helmet."
Vocabulary lists containing buckle
The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 6
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The New SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
The ACT Reading Test: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 6
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Higher insurance costs could cause some homeowners to buckle under the financial pressure, Cotality said.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026
Because their play Sunday could buckle the resolve of even true believers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 20, 2026
Strong corporate earnings and a resilient jobs market have given investors confidence that the economy won’t buckle under higher borrowing costs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
These engineered structures are designed to bend, buckle and snap in controlled ways that provide useful functions.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 4, 2026
The floe, which Worsley estimated at possibly a million tons, pressed so hard against Endurance that her beams began to buckle and her foremast jerked and shook like a cornstalk in the wind.
From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong
"So they detach the slow-growing gut, which is now tethering the lengthening body. The body buckles and twists into coiling," Miyashita explains.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 1, 2026
“We need more cowboy hats and belt buckles in Washington,” he wrote in a campaign post on July 15.
From Slate ● Jul. 23, 2026
As much of Europe buckles under the weight of mass tourism, Georgia is only now getting in on the action in earnest.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2025
At the commission's headquarters near Arras, Stephan showed us trays of objects which had been found there, including parts of boots, rusted belt buckles, shoulder badges, buttons and regimental insignia.
From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2025
Oh, those troops were impressive-looking with all those belts and buckles and powder horns and bayonets and so forth dangling about their red uniforms.
From "My Brother Sam is Dead" by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
Beattie buckled but didn’t break — at least not then.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026
The last remaining big Wall Street holdouts have buckled under.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026
They are often "outdated, too narrow, overgrown with vegetation and buckled by tree roots", complained Lisa Feitsch of the cycling association ADFC.
From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026
Lisandro Martinez: Experience vital on a day when the home side might have buckled.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
After they buckled their seatbelts, Mr. Drew drove to the Marvin house to pick up Bess and George.
From "Sleepover Sleuths: Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew, #1" by Carolyn Keene
The leak wasn’t visible to the eye: They realized there was a problem when the floors started buckling.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 1, 2026
National Rail explained that heat can cause a number of issues including overhead lines expanding and rails buckling.
From BBC ● Jun. 23, 2026
With Cuba's economy buckling five months into a US-imposed fuel blockade, and the national housing deficit running to over 900,000 units, authorities say a quick fix is unlikely.
From Barron's ● Jun. 17, 2026
They show riders from children to young people on a night out stepping into Waymos and buckling up, along with shots of Waymos swerving to avoid accidents.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026
Alfred leaned against the tilting wall, his legs buckling, his eyes fogging.
From "The Contender" by Robert Lipsyte
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
