collision

American  

[kuh-lizh-uhn] / kəˈlɪʒ ən /

noun

• collisions
  plural

1. 

   the act of colliding; a coming violently into contact; crash.

   the collision of two airplanes.

2. a clash; conflict.

   a collision of purposes.

3. Physics. the meeting of particles or of bodies in which each exerts a force upon the other, causing the exchange of energy or momentum.

---

collision British  

/ kəˈlɪʒən /

noun

1. a violent impact of moving objects; crash

2. the conflict of opposed ideas, wishes, attitudes, etc

   a collision of interests

3. physics an event in which two or more bodies or particles come together with a resulting change of direction and, normally, energy

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• anticollision
  adjective
• collisional
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• collisions
  plural

---

Etymology

Origin of collision

1400–50; late Middle English < Late Latin collīsiōn- (stem of collīsiō ), equivalent to collīs ( us ) (past participle of collīdere to collide ) + -iōn- -ion

---

Explanation

A collision is when two or more things smash together. You shouldn't give yourself a pedicure while driving because it might result in a collision, wrecking your car and spoiling your toenail polish to boot. Collision comes from the Latin col-, "together," and lædĕre, "to hurt by striking." When a train hits a car, that's a collision. An asteroid hurtling toward earth is on a "collision course" with our planet. Collision also works for abstract conflicts that get violent or hurt your brain somehow, like the collision between two politicians during a debate, or the collision of colors in your outfit.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

collision collisions

Their two paths to power — which led them on vastly different journeys through different countries, organizations and governmental roles — left them on a collision course to lead Los Angeles.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026

In some areas, such as collision repair and auto refinishing, that figure is even higher, at 19%.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

The collision happened when a state-operated Renfe high-speed train smashed into the back of a stationary train operated by the Iryo company.

From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026

That gives researchers an unusual opportunity to make an "apples-to-apples" comparison between two facilities operating at very different collision energies.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 31, 2026

If he wanted to move fast, he had to move forward, even if that meant heading for a straight-on collision with the other quad.

From "Stormbreaker" by Anthony Horowitz

This suggests that collisions may have altered their surfaces much less than expected.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

Other research has shown permanent daylight saving could lead to more vehicle collisions with pedestrians because of darker morning commutes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2026

The LHC carried out its first oxygen collisions in 2025.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 31, 2026

After establishing these signatures in collisions involving large nuclei, physicists began finding similar collective motion in much smaller systems.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 31, 2026

Major recent collisions from Saturn to Venus were alleged in a popular book, Worlds in Collision, published in 1950 by a psychiatrist named Immanuel Velikovsky.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---