scrunch
Americanverb (used with object)
-
scrunches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
scrunched,
past participle, past
-
scrunching
present participle
-
to crunch, crush, or crumple.
-
to contract; squeeze together.
I had to scrunch my shoulders to get through the door.
verb (used without object)
-
scrunches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
scrunched,
past participle, past
-
scrunching
present participle
noun
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
scrunchsimple
-
scrunchessimple
-
have scrunchedperfect
-
has scrunchedperfect
-
am scrunchingprogressive
-
are scrunchingprogressive
-
is scrunchingprogressive
-
have been scrunchingperfect progressive
-
has been scrunchingperfect progressive
Past
-
scrunchedsimple
-
had scrunchedperfect
-
was scrunchingprogressive
-
were scrunchingprogressive
-
had been scrunchingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of scrunch
First recorded in 1815–25; perhaps expressive variant of crunch
Explanation
To scrunch is to crumple or crush something. In the process of writing your novel by hand, you'll have to scrunch a lot of pages and toss them into the trash can. You can scrunch up you sister's favorite shirt and shove it back in her drawer after she says you can't borrow it, and you can also scrunch up your face in anger. Use this verb whenever you crease, wrinkle, crush, or squeeze something into a mass. It's also a good term for a crunching sound: "I heard a scrunch in the dry leaves under my window." Scrunch arose as an intensive form of crunch, originally meaning "to bite."
Vocabulary lists containing scrunch
"The People Could Fly" by Virginia Hamilton
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I Survived the Battle of D-Day, 1944
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Where the River Takes Us
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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:
You cook them really quickly in a pan with butter and then scrunch them, which allows for the maple-soy butter to pool in all the little pockets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 11, 2026
My face would scrunch up and I’d shudder from the intense flavors, but I never cried.
From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2025
A good way to check if wrapping paper is recyclable, according to Wrap, is the "scrunch test".
From BBC ● Dec. 3, 2022
Small amounts of the DNA didn’t appear to affect the cells, but larger amounts caused them to scrunch up, suggesting they were responding to the stimulus.
From Science Magazine ● Oct. 19, 2021
Dad and Steph scrunch their faces together so I can see both of them on the screen.
From "Clairboyance" by Kristiana Kahakauwila
When a visible star is tugged by the gravity of an unseen companion, the motion to and from Earth stretches and scrunches the light.
From Science Magazine ● Jul. 17, 2022
It scrunches its cheeks, raises its eyebrows, and then grimaces and blinks.
From The Verge ● May 4, 2022
She sprays it 16 times with disinfectant and scrunches it up into a tight ball that she seals with a plastic tie.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 9, 2022
At times, he scrunches his eyes tight, extra tight, particularly when talking about tension or negativity.
From Slate ● Apr. 30, 2019
She touches my shoulder and scrunches her eyes like we’re sharing good news together.
From "Starfish" by Akemi Dawn Bowman
The footwell was noticeably narrow even for me at 5’6” so someone taller would feel scrunched when fully stretched out.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
The woman's Do Not Attempt Resuscitation document was also found scrunched up in a cupboard, the report added.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
His face scrunched as a breeze that smelled like vomit hit us.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
When ISA President Fernando Aguerre informed Aguirre on Friday that she had qualified, her face scrunched up on camera as she started to cry.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 3, 2024
“One moment, Regan,” he said, and we turned as he made his way back down the hallway toward us, his forehead scrunched in concentration.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
When Jimmy is passionately advocating for something and Kayla is in the same frame, she’s often gesticulating, scrunching up her face or emitting noises like “pffffft.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
The team logged behaviors from the shifting of silk-producing spinnerets to a scrunching of all legs that resembled a dead spider.
From New York Times ● Aug. 8, 2022
At Y/Project, Glenn Marten continued to rework the classics – twisting a trench and scrunching its form with the aid of a wired hem.
From The Guardian ● Jan. 28, 2021
Scared and grieving, living in a grim and hopeless world, what’s to stop a reality-altering super being from waving her hands, scrunching her nose, and dropping into the seemingly safe confines of a 1950s sitcom?
From Slate ● Jan. 14, 2021
“No, Auggie’s fine,” she answered, scrunching up her face a bit.
From "Auggie & Me" by R. J. Palacio
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.
