collapse
Americanverb (used without object)
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to fall or cave in; crumble suddenly.
The roof collapsed and buried the crowd.
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to be made so that sections or parts can be folded up, as for convenient storage.
This bridge table collapses.
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to break down; come to nothing; fail.
Despite all their efforts the peace talks collapsed.
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to fall unconscious or as if unconscious or physically depleted, as from a stroke, heart attack, disease, or exhaustion.
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Pathology.
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to sink into extreme weakness.
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(of lungs) to come into an airless state.
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verb (used with object)
noun
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a falling in or together.
Three miners were trapped by the collapse of the tunnel roof.
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a sudden, complete failure; breakdown.
The bribery scandal brought about the complete collapse of his industrial empire.
verb
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(intr) to fall down or cave in suddenly
the whole building collapsed
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(intr) to fail completely
his story collapsed on investigation
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(intr) to break down or fall down from lack of strength
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to fold (furniture, etc) compactly or (of furniture, etc) to be designed to fold compactly
noun
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the act or instance of suddenly falling down, caving in, or crumbling
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a sudden failure or breakdown
Usage
What does collapse mean? Collapse means to break apart suddenly, as in The rickety bridge collapsed into the river. If something collapses, it falls apart or caves in quickly and suddenly. Usually, something collapses because it’s unable to support its own weight. Collapse can also be used figuratively to mean to fail or break down, as in The party quickly collapsed when two groups started fighting with each other. Collapse can also mean to fall unconscious or to pass out, as in The marathon runner collapsed due to heat stroke. Collapse can also be used as a noun in any of these senses, as in She determined that the coins dated back to the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Example: I had to rebuild my house of cards after the wobbly table caused it to collapse.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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collapsesimple
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collapsessimple
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have collapsedperfect
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has collapsedperfect
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am collapsingprogressive
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are collapsingprogressive
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is collapsingprogressive
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have been collapsingperfect progressive
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has been collapsingperfect progressive
Past
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collapsedsimple
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had collapsedperfect
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was collapsingprogressive
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were collapsingprogressive
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had been collapsingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of collapse
First recorded in 1725–35; from Latin collāpsus “fallen together,” past participle of collābī “to fall down, fall together, fall into ruins,” from col- col- 1 + lābī “to fall, slide, make a mistake”
Explanation
To collapse means to fall over, cave in, or totally crumple. After finding out that the stock market has collapsed and your investments along with it, you'd probably collapse to the ground and sob uncontrollably. From the Latin collapsus, meaning “fall together," comes our English collapse, a word that functions as both noun and verb. Empires collapse after revolutions, and your dog will eventually collapse from exhaustion if he keeps chasing his tail in circles. But if a company falls apart after the boss retires, or you have a total breakdown cramming for exams, that's a kind of collapse, too.
Vocabulary lists containing collapse
The Great Depression and The New Deal
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"A Retrieved Reformation" by O. Henry
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
At that construction site, two columns buckled, placing the high rise at risk of partial collapse and causing nine neighboring buildings to shut down temporarily.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
However, the collapse of the ceasefire earlier this month reignited fears over global energy supplies and pushed the oil price back up.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
But experts say existing protections would collapse without the legal architecture of the consent decree to support them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
The islands have been hit multiple times as the two sides fight over the strategic waterway, which Iran has sealed following the collapse of a preliminary deal aimed at ending the war.
From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026
I slam it shut and collapse onto my bed.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
It isn’t as if she doesn’t have several plans B. And it gives “Techniquely” a winningly informal bouquet, especially when the jokes fall flat and she collapses, mock-groaning, on the cutting board.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
The first approach uses hydrodynamic cavitation, which creates and collapses tiny vapor bubbles in contaminated water.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 20, 2026
This detail matters because it collapses the false divide between pleasure and care.
From Salon ● Jul. 20, 2026
She and five of her relatives are sleeping in tents in the yard, out of fear of more collapses.
From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026
Pain stabs through me as everything I am made of collapses, my entire world dismantled in a moment.
From "Divergent" by Veronica Roth
StarHub and M1 could announce a deal in 2026, the analyst says in a note, after the M1-Simba deal collapsed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
The South African authorities are investigating the death of a Nigerian man who collapsed while he was being arrested by police in Cape Town last week.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
More rights followed as Prenga collapsed to the canvas and the referee had seen enough.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
This referred to the preliminary deal aimed at ending the war which has collapsed as the foes fight to break a deadlock over the Strait of Hormuz.
From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026
What if the river flooded his tunnel, or if the tunnel simply collapsed on him?
From "Abel's Island" by William Steig
Unverified footage shared on social media showed parts of a wall at the centuries-old Kumamoto Castle collapsing.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
In these medical reports the injury usually happened during delivery and the baby seemed to be well for an average of 48 hours until suddenly collapsing and often dying.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
And the midtempo ballad “The Knife” describes a collapsing relationship as a mortal threat, akin to a dagger jabbed into one’s side or a case of kerosene waiting to be ignited.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
But this one will probably sting even more since the Three Lions were five minutes away from their first final in six decades before collapsing against Argentina.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
She clung to the angel’s arm, trying to claw her way back onto the collapsing shore.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
