crackling

noun

crack·​ling

plural cracklings

1

ˈkra-k(ə-)liŋ  : a series of small sharp cracking noises

the crackling of frozen snow as we walk

2

\ ˈkra-​klən , -​kliŋ \

a

: the crisp residue left after the rendering of lard from pig fat or the frying or roasting of pig skin

Want to know how to get perfect crisp crackling on roast pork?

—BBC Good Food

… for me fat is a largely a textural pleasure, … and pork crackling is surely the supreme example of this: a blistered top, as dry and crunchy as an autumn leaf, hiding a layer of yielding, creamy fat beneath.

—Felicity Cloake

also : a piece of this residue

We feasted on … fresh hog cracklings from a road-side trailer north of Houston …

—Peter Richmond

b

: food or a piece of food that resembles crackling

duck cracklings

The great Simon Hopkinson, author of Roast Chicken and Other Stories, gave me—appropriately enough—a bag of chicken crackling as a present, and I pressed him for the recipe.

—Nigella Lawson

Examples of crackling in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For some North American Indigenous groups like the Lakota, however, the crackling of a forest in the deep cold is just the sound of winter. —Owen Clarke, Outside, 23 Jan. 2026

The best of the bunch run the gamut from crowd-pleasing interpretations of tonka bean and leather to on-the-nose odes to a crackling fireplace. —Conçetta Ciarlo, Vogue, 14 Jan. 2026

One of the sport’s most bitter rivalries was lost to conference realignment, giving this game a crackling, pent-up vibe. —The Athletic College Football Staff, New York Times, 13 Jan. 2026

But once inside, as the crackling fire quickly warms you up, there’s no better feeling after hours on the trail than dropping your backpack on the floor, taking off your boots and settling in for a few days of peaceful escape. —The Denver Post, Denver Post, 7 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1599, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for crackling

• tackling

Kids Definition

crackling

noun

crack·​ling

1

ˈkrak-(ə-)liŋ

: a series of small sharp crackling sounds

2

ˈkrak-lən, 

ˈkrak-liŋ

: the crisp remainder left after the fat has been separated from the meat or skin (as of pork)

—usually used in plural