big crunch

American  

[big kruhnch] / ˈbɪg ˈkrʌntʃ /

noun

big crunches plural

1. Astronomy. Also, Big Crunch. a hypothetical event in which gravitational attraction causes the universe to contract until it eventually collapses to a singularity or black hole.

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big crunch Scientific  

1. The convergence of all matter, energy, and space into a single, minute point. This convergence is hypothesized to be the final event in the universe in some cosmological theories.

2. Compare big bang See also closed universe

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• big crunches
  plural

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

big crunch

"The new data seem to indicate that the cosmological constant is negative, and that the universe will end in a big crunch."

From Science Daily ● Feb. 16, 2026

Will it continue expanding forever, or be pulled into reverse, ending in a big crunch?

From Science Magazine ● Jan. 13, 2022

"They start with all-white meat chicken, and get their big crunch from a combo of the wheat crackers and walnuts that make up our ghostly delicious coating," said Cain.

From Fox News ● Oct. 23, 2021

With the discovery of dark energy, however, it does not appear that the universe will experience a big crunch, so we can put worrying about it on the back burner.

From Textbooks ● Oct. 13, 2016

If the expansion is slowing down rapidly, then it’s a good sign that the energy from the big bang is nearly spent; our universe would be heading for a big crunch.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife