collide
Americanverb (used without object)
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collides,
present (3rd person singular)
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collided,
past participle, past
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colliding
present participle
verb (used with object)
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collides,
present (3rd person singular)
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collided,
past participle, past
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colliding
present participle
verb
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to crash together with a violent impact
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to conflict in attitude, opinion, or desire; clash; disagree
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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collidesimple
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collidessimple
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have collidedperfect
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has collidedperfect
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am collidingprogressive
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are collidingprogressive
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is collidingprogressive
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have been collidingperfect progressive
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has been collidingperfect progressive
Past
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collidedsimple
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had collidedperfect
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was collidingprogressive
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were collidingprogressive
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had been collidingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of collide
1615–25; < Latin collīdere to strike together, equivalent to col- col- 1 + -līdere, combining form of laedere to strike
Explanation
It could be protons bouncing around in a particle accelerator, two cars failing to stop at an intersection, or the priorities of two people with very different goals. When things crash together, they collide. The verb collide has roots in the Latin word collidere, which comes from col- or “together” and laedere, “to strike or damage," like planes that collide in midair. Collide can also describe ideas that clash, such as expectations that collide with reality or radical views that collide with tradition.
Vocabulary lists containing collide
Conservation of Energy and Energy Transfer - Introductory
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Force and Motion (Mechanics) - Introductory
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Conservation of Energy and Energy Transfer - Middle School
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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:
Instead of gently probing nuclei, researchers collide them at the highest energies available and reconstruct their shapes from the patterns left behind.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 23, 2026
In death, the beloved bald eagle’s final resting place has ignited a bitter clash where internet fame and tribal rights collide.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
“His ambitions will soon collide with the fiscal reality,” she said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
"Most of those don't collide with anything, most of the time," Matthew Archer, deputy director for launch and space domain awareness at the UK Space Agency told AFP on a visit to the observatory.
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
They’re carrying a large crate, and when we collide, it nearly lands on me.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
At 1-1, Roberto Carlos' seemingly harmless cross was lofted high into the Hampden Park sky, destined to drop where D and penalty box chalk collides.
From BBC ● May 28, 2026
On another level, though, Pitchford is about what happens when that principle collides with the punishing procedural architecture of modern postconviction review.
From Slate ● Apr. 10, 2026
When a large meteor collides with Earth, it produces intense heat that melts surrounding rock.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 3, 2026
Such absurdities have been constant since the release of the Epstein files as the imperative to protect actual or potential victims collides with the legal mandate for speedy disclosure under the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 4, 2026
As I turn away, I see Madge jostle Jax, who then collides into Deb-and-Kiki.
From "Muffled" by Jennifer Gennari
That independence has increasingly collided with Hegseth’s vision for the paper.
From Salon ● Aug. 22, 2026
He recounted an incident in which he had been leaving city hall in July and collided with an e-bike shortly after his administration had discussed traffic restrictions in the city centre.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
One theory for the origin of the Martian moons -- the "giant impact" hypothesis -- is that they formed after a celestial body collided with Mars.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
The 19-year-old NSN Cycling rider reportedly collided with a vehicle not involved in the race.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
Just before we collided, I hit the ground baseball-style and slid on the wet marble floor straight under the creature.
From "The Last Olympian" by Rick Riordan
The proposed mechanism depends on what happens when protons inside colliding nuclei reach enormous energies.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026
The most high-profile of these was Carlos Sainz colliding with Oscar Piastri as the McLaren driver came up to lap him.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Housing needs of cities are colliding with safety concerns about bigger projects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
It is a positioning problem colliding with a macro shock.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 13, 2026
Even though the beast stopped, Mr. Flux remained in motion, flying forward, losing his grip on the tufts of fur, shooting across the stream, colliding with Otto in midair.
From "The Last Last-Day-of-Summer" by Lamar Giles
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.
