fracture

American  

[frak-cher] / ˈfræk tʃər /

noun

fractures plural

1. the breaking of a bone, cartilage, or the like, or the resulting condition.

2. the act of breaking; state of being broken.

3. a break, breach, or split.

4. the characteristic manner of breaking.

   a material of unpredictable fracture.

5. the characteristic appearance of a broken surface, as of a mineral.

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verb (used with object)

fractures, present (3rd person singular) fractured, past participle, past fracturing present participle

1. to cause or to suffer a fracture in (a bone, etc.).

2. to break or crack.

   Synonyms:

   split, rupture, splinter, shatter, smash

3. Slang. to amuse highly or cause to laugh heartily; delight.

   The new comic really fractured the audience.

verb (used without object)

fractures, present (3rd person singular) fractured, past participle, past fracturing present participle

1. to become fractured; break.

   a mineral that does not fracture easily.

fracture British  

/ ˈfræktʃə /

noun

1. the act of breaking or the state of being broken

2. 1. the breaking or cracking of a bone or the tearing of a cartilage

   2. the resulting condition See also Colles' fracture comminuted fracture compound fracture greenstick fracture impacted

3. a division, split, or breach

4. mineralogy

   1. the characteristic appearance of the surface of a freshly broken mineral or rock

   2. the way in which a mineral or rock naturally breaks

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verb

1. to break or cause to break; split

2. to break or crack (a bone) or (of a bone) to become broken or cracked

3. to tear (a cartilage) or (of a cartilage) to become torn

fracture Scientific  

/ frăk′chər /

1. A break or rupture in bone tissue.

2. ◆ A comminuted fracture results in more than two fragments.

3. ◆ Although most fractures are caused by a direct blow or sudden, twisting force, stress fractures result from repetitive physical activity.

4. ◆ In an incomplete fracture, the fracture line does not completely traverse the bone.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• fracturer
  noun
• refracture
  verb
• fracturable
  adjective
• fractural
  adjective
• postfracture
  adjective
• refracturable
  adjective
• unfractured
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• fractures
  plural

Participles

• fracturing
  present
• fractured
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• fracture
  simple
• fractures
  simple
• have fractured
  perfect
• has fractured
  perfect
• am fracturing
  progressive
• are fracturing
  progressive
• is fracturing
  progressive
• have been fracturing
  perfect progressive
• has been fracturing
  perfect progressive

Past

• fractured
  simple
• had fractured
  perfect
• was fracturing
  progressive
• were fracturing
  progressive
• had been fracturing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will fracture
  simple
• will have fractured
  perfect
• will be fracturing
  progressive
• will have been fracturing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of fracture

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin frāctūra “a breach, cleft, fracture,” from frāct(us) “broken” (past participle of frangere “to break, shatter”; see also break) + -ūra -ure

Explanation

Think of something hard breaking in a crisp, snapping manner, and you've just imagined a fracture. The word is most often applied to a broken bone, but it can used to describe any sharp, sudden break of something solid. The Latin frāctus means "broken," and its descendant fracture can mean any break, though it's most often associated with a hard — maybe even brittle — material, such as a bone, a rock, or the earth’s crust. When something softer is split we say it is torn. For example, when we say someone broke an arm, we are referring to the bone, not the muscle; we'd say the muscle is torn. When someone funny "breaks us up," we might say "you fracture me!"

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fracture fractures fractured fracturing

Lopez said those breaks were not related to each other or to Thursday’s fracture of the far bigger pipe in West Hollywood, which was constructed in 1916.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2026

Magma rising from deep within Earth can fracture an oceanic plate, form extensive dike networks, and alter the chemistry of the plate itself.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 18, 2026

Xi appears to understand the lesson from the 1960s, when Soviet heavy-handedness toward China as the “younger brother” helped fracture that earlier alliance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026

Nigeria has been fighting a jihadist conflict that over the years has seen armed Islamist groups spread and fracture outside their strongholds in the northeast.

From Barron's ● Jul. 11, 2026

I’ve come a long way since my hip fracture, and thank the Lord for that.

From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen

"People are coming in with burns and fractures from being trapped under objects due to the earthquake, and ambulances are constantly bringing in injured people," NHK quoted one hospital employee as saying.

From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026

But there were no obvious bone fractures, open wounds or visible parasites.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026

Heated debates over slavery, the constitution and the economic and political system created clear fractures among the population.

From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026

She was already in surgery for fractures in both arms at that point.

From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026

Years later I found out I had sustained minor fractures to both feet.

From "Bad Boy" by Walter Dean Myers

That fractured largely along timing and the percentage cut owed to Roh.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026

After more than a decade of posturing and power struggles - a soap opera of warring promoters, shifting managers, fractured television deals and failed negotiations - it has finally come down to this.

From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026

But the warehouse club has long been the one thing our fractured country agrees is good.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026

They also tested different crustal compositions and temperature conditions before calculating how much fractured, water permeable crust each impact produced.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 2, 2026

The draccus crashed into the trunk, and though it didn’t snap, it fractured with a sound like a crack of lightning.

From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss

Burning natural gas also causes significant air pollution in the form of nitric oxides, sulfur, mercury and particulates, while hydraulic fracturing or "fracking," can contaminate ground water supplies.

From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026

The film also shows Maddox and her father in a vicious argument inside her car that illustrates the fracturing of their once-close bond.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026

Reigning champion Marc Marquez - Alex's brother - missed the race after fracturing his foot in France last weekend.

From BBC ● May 17, 2026

Asian countries are rationing fuel, governments are emptying their crude-oil stockpiles, airlines are canceling thousands of flights, and Middle East alliances are fracturing.

From Barron's ● May 15, 2026

He found the dam that held back his fear was fracturing.

From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman

Related Words

• crack
• fissure
• wound