crash
1to make a loud, clattering noise, as of something dashed to pieces.
to break or fall to pieces with noise.
(of moving vehicles, objects, etc.) to collide, especially violently and noisily.
to move or go with a crash; strike with a crash.
Aeronautics. to land in an abnormal manner, usually causing severe damage: The airliner crashed.
to collapse or fail suddenly, as a financial enterprise: The stock market crashed.
Informal. to gain admittance to a party, performance, etc., without an invitation, ticket, or permission.
Slang.
to sleep.
to have a temporary place to sleep or live without payment: He let me crash at his house.
to fall asleep: I get home in the evening and I just crash till it's time for dinner.
Slang. to experience unpleasant sensations, as sudden exhaustion or depression, when a drug, especially an amphetamine, wears off.
Medicine/Medical Slang. to suffer cardiac arrest.
Ecology. (of a population) to decline rapidly.
Computers. to shut down because of a malfunction of hardware or software.
to break into pieces violently and noisily; shatter.
to force or drive with violence and noise (usually followed by in, through, out, etc.).
Aeronautics. to cause (an aircraft) to make a landing in an abnormal manner, usually damaging or wrecking the aircraft.
Informal.
to gain admittance to, even though uninvited: to crash a party.
to enter without a ticket, permission, etc.: to crash the gate at a football game.
a sudden loud noise, as of something being violently smashed or struck: the crash of thunder.
a breaking or falling to pieces with loud noise: the sudden crash of dishes.
a collision or crashing, as of automobiles, trains, etc.
the shock of collision and breaking.
a sudden and violent falling to ruin.
a sudden general collapse of a business enterprise, prosperity, the stock market, etc.: the crash of 1929.
Aeronautics. an act or instance of crashing.
Ecology. a sudden, rapid decline in the size of a population.
characterized by an intensive effort, especially to deal with an emergency, meet a deadline, etc.: a crash plan to house flood victims; a crash diet.
Origin of crash
1Other words for crash
Other words from crash
- crasher, noun
Other definitions for crash (2 of 2)
a plain-weave fabric of rough, irregular, or lumpy yarns, for toweling, dresses, etc.
Bookbinding. starched cotton fabric used to reinforce the spine of a bound book.
Origin of crash
2Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use crash in a sentence
There were also crashes not due to either mechanical or human error but to a lack of warning of dangerous conditions.
Flight 8501 Poses Question: Are Modern Jets Too Automated to Fly? | Clive Irving | January 4, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTBut one extra trick would instantly solve the problem of crashes that occur over water.
Red Tape and Black Boxes: Why We Keep ‘Losing’ Airliners in 2014 | Clive Irving | December 29, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTOnly 101 lives were lost by the two air forces and most of those were not caused by crashes but by accidents on the tarmac.
Blood and War: The Hard Truth About ‘Boots on the Ground’ | Clive Irving | September 22, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIn 2013 just 173 people died, worldwide, in commercial air crashes.
Twin Disasters Turn 2014 Into the Year of Flying Dangerously | Clive Irving | July 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTWhen we step into that cylinder of dry air and certain doom, all we can think is what it will be like when it crashes.
The Malaysian Air Tragedy Reawakens a Primal Fear | Kelly Williams Brown | July 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Successive crashes showed that many of the trees had been unable to resist the burst of the hurricane.
Michael Strogoff | Jules VerneThe crashes continued, so I stayed there till the dawn crept into a small window before I ventured back to the hotel.
Polly the Pagan | Isabel AndersonThe thunder crashes with fearful noise, and the lightning gleams in fitful lurid streaks across the inky sky.
Hudson Bay | R.M. BallantyneThey prove, rather, that Greek belief that the great crashes are preceded by a louder merriment and a wilder gaiety.
Letters from America | Rupert BrookeAt any rate it was followed by a series of crashes and reports that left no doubt in our minds as to what was going on.
Fast in the Ice | R.M. Ballantyne
British Dictionary definitions for crash (1 of 2)
/ (kræʃ) /
to make or cause to make a loud noise as of solid objects smashing or clattering
to fall or cause to fall with force, breaking in pieces with a loud noise as of solid objects smashing
(intr) to break or smash in pieces with a loud noise
(intr) to collapse or fail suddenly: this business is sure to crash
to cause (an aircraft) to hit land or water violently resulting in severe damage or (of an aircraft) to hit land or water in this way
to cause (a car, etc) to collide with another car or other object or (of two or more cars) to be involved in a collision
to move or cause to move violently or noisily: to crash through a barrier
British informal short for gate-crash
(intr) (of a computer system or program) to fail suddenly and completely because of a malfunction
(intr) slang another term for crash out
crash and burn informal to fail; be unsuccessful
an act or instance of breaking and falling to pieces
a sudden loud noise: the crash of thunder
a collision, as between vehicles
a sudden descent of an aircraft as a result of which it hits land or water
the sudden collapse of a business, stock exchange, etc, esp one causing further financial failure
(modifier)
requiring or using intensive effort and all possible resources in order to accomplish something quickly: a crash programme
sudden or vigorous: a crash halt; a crash tackle
crash-and-burn informal a complete failure
Origin of crash
1- See also crash out
Derived forms of crash
- crasher, noun
British Dictionary definitions for crash (2 of 2)
/ (kræʃ) /
a coarse cotton or linen cloth used for towelling, curtains, etc
Origin of crash
2Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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