crackle
[krak-uh l]
- to make slight, sudden, sharp noises, rapidly repeated.
- to form a network of fine cracks on the surface.
- (of ceramic glaze) to craze.
- to exhibit liveliness, vibrancy, anticipation, etc.: The play crackled with wit.
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- to cause to crackle.
- to break with a crackling noise.
- to craze (ceramic glaze).
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- the act of crackling.
- a crackling noise.
- a network of fine cracks, as in the glaze of some kinds of porcelain.
- crackleware.
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Origin of crackle
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for crackle
Contemporary Examples
Instead we heard the crackle of automatic gunfire and we could see gray smoke rising from the eastern side of the town.
In terms of charisma, the guy has all the snap, crackle, and pop of pudding.
Then one hears the crackle of gunfire in the air, the Somali soldiers begin yelling at Carstens about his camera.
That said, the veep lacked a certain snap, crackle, and pop.
And on YouTube, Crackle and Facebook the first episode has garnered more than 90,000 page views.
Jerry Seinfeld’s ‘Comedians in Cars’ Web Series Ruffles U.K. Feathers With Similarity to British ‘Carpool’Soraya Roberts
August 2, 2012
Historical Examples
A ripping crash like the crackle of lightning in the vaulted room!
Two Thousand Miles BelowCharles Willard Diffin
"Just look, it's like cardboard," continued she, making one crackle between her fingers.
L'AssommoirEmile Zola
A volley of screams and oaths from the plain answered the crackle of the Browning.
The Solar MagnetSterner St. Paul Meek
The band had stopped, and there was the distant hum of voices and the crackle of plates.
The ChristianHall Caine
Then they recommenced and the crackle of branches was louder than ever.
The Rise of Roscoe PaineJoseph C. Lincoln
crackle
- to make or cause to make a series of slight sharp noises, as of paper being crushed or of a wood fire burning
- (tr) to decorate (porcelain or pottery) by causing a fine network of cracks to appear in the glaze
- (intr) to abound in vivacity or energy
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- the act or sound of crackling
- intentional crazing in the glaze of a piece of porcelain or pottery
- Also called: crackleware porcelain or pottery so decorated
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for crackle
v.
mid-15c., crackelen, frequentative of cracken "to crack" (see crack (v.)). Related: Crackled; crackling. The noun is recorded from 1833.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper