fracture
[ frak-cher ]
/ ˈfræk tʃər /
noun
verb (used with object), frac·tured, frac·tur·ing.
verb (used without object), frac·tured, frac·tur·ing.
to become fractured; break: a mineral that does not fracture easily.
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RELATED WORDS
wound, fissure, crack, displacement, rift, discontinuity, opening, severance, schism, gap, rent, splinter, breach, cleavage, cleft, disjunction, split, fragmentation, mutilation
Nearby words
- fractious,
- fractiously,
- fractocumulus,
- fractostratus,
- fractur,
- fracture by contrecoup,
- fracture zone,
- fractus,
- frae,
- fraenulum
Origin of fracture
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for fracture
fracture
/ (ˈfræktʃə) /
noun
the act of breaking or the state of being broken
- the breaking or cracking of a bone or the tearing of a cartilage
- the resulting conditionSee also Colles' fracture, comminuted fracture, compound fracture, greenstick fracture, impacted (def. 2)
a division, split, or breach
mineralogy
- the characteristic appearance of the surface of a freshly broken mineral or rock
- the way in which a mineral or rock naturally breaks
verb
Word Origin for fracture
C15: from Old French, from Latin fractūra, from frangere to break
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
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
fracture
[ frăk′chər ]
n.
The act or process of breaking.
A break, rupture, or crack, especially in bone or cartilage.
v.
To cause to break.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
fracture
[ frăk′chər ]
A break or rupture in bone tissue.♦ A comminuted fracture results in more than two fragments.♦ Although most fractures are caused by a direct blow or sudden, twisting force, stress fractures result from repetitive physical activity.♦ In an incomplete fracture, the fracture line does not completely traverse the bone.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.