Used to describe actions that started in the past and continue into or have direct relevance to the present.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Nathan Berman, managing principal and founder of MetroLoft, said that the steel columns may have buckled because they hadn’t been properly reinforced to support the extra weight of the new additions to the property.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
"The two teams from Glasgow have buckled under the pressure."
From BBC ● Feb. 22, 2026
Mr. Montgomery, a 73-year-old retired autoworker, has spent $25,000 in repairs and remediation, but mold has continually reappeared, and the walls have buckled.
From New York Times ● Jul. 2, 2023
Roads have buckled, and train cables have melted.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 21, 2021
The pressure might have buckled a lesser individual, but no one was more up to the task than Katherine Johnson.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
