- present participle of crack.
cracking
Americannoun
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crackings
plural
adverb
adjective
idioms
adjective
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informal (prenominal) fast; vigorous (esp in the phrase a cracking pace )
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informal to start doing something quickly or do something with increased speed
adverb
noun
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The process of breaking down complex chemical compounds by heating them. Sometimes a catalyst is added to lower the amount of heat needed for the reaction. Cracking is used especially for breaking petroleum molecules into shorter molecules and to extract low-boiling fractions, such as gasoline, from petroleum.
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See also hydrocracking
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of cracking
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English; see crack, -ing 1, -ing 2
Vocabulary lists containing cracking
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:
Telltale signs of water damage include discolored wall panels, black mold, cracking plaster or peeling paint, just to name a few.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
"But the good news is that we've got our headliners and we're cracking on, and we just can't wait to get back."
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
China has been cracking down on a practice known as "Singapore-washing," which is when companies leave the country to take advantage of looser regulations, global customers or funding opportunities.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
“I lost my job, got divorced and got cancer all at the same time,” said Barberie, her voice cracking as she sat near Edwards and Lucey in the lounge.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
The hallway back to the courtyard felt at least three times longer than it had before, with huge gaps cracking open in the floor in some places, the ceiling and walls collapsing in others.
From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley
The campus was impressive for what happened within its walls: chest crackings, organ transplants, molecular imagings, genetic probes, and virtually any other medical service known in the advanced world.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
I said nothing, and Leper, having said so much, went on to say more, to speak above the wind and crackings as though his story would never be finished.
From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
All the Arctic peoples had been thrown into panic, and so had the animals, not only by the fog and the magnetic variations but by unseasonal crackings of ice and stirrings in the soil.
From "The Subtle Knife" by Philip Pullman
Despite the protecting carton, they went off with crackings like gunfire.
From The Ambulance Made Two Trips by Murray Leinster
In others, the joints, although stiff, can be moved but exhibit pronounced crackings.
From Manual of Surgery Volume First: General Surgery. Sixth Edition. by Alexis Thomson
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.
