crucible

noun

cru·ci·ble ˈkrü-sə-bəl

: a vessel of a very refractory (see refractory entry 1 sense 3) material (such as porcelain) used for melting and calcining a substance that requires a high degree of heat

: a severe test

He's ready to face the crucible of the Olympics.

: a place or situation in which concentrated forces interact to cause or influence change or development

… conditioned by having grown up within the crucible of Chinatown …—

Tom Wolfe

His character was formed in the crucible of war.

Did you know?

Unless you’re studying Arthur Miller’s The Crucible in school, it may not be crucial to learn the story behind crucible, but it can’t hurt! Crucible looks like it should be closely related to the Latin combining form cruc- (“cross”); however, unlike crucial, it isn’t. It was forged instead from the Medieval Latin crucibulum, a noun for an earthen pot used to melt metals, and in English it first referred to a vessel made of a very heat-resistant material (such as porcelain) used for melting a substance that requires a high degree of heat. It’s possible that the resemblance between cruc- and crucible encouraged people to start using crucible to mean “a severe trial,” as that sense is synonymous with one meaning of cross, but the idea of simmering in a literal crucible also sounds plenty severe. The newest sense of crucible (“a situation in which great changes take place,” as in “forged in the crucible of war”) recalls the fire and heat required to transform some solids into liquids.

Examples of crucible in a Sentence

He's ready to face the crucible of the Olympics. His character was formed in the crucible of war.

Recent Examples on the Web Each week, the contestants will be thrown into a battle-royale challenge, a crucible that will push them to their limits. —

Shelby Stewart, Essence, 13 Sep. 2023 In Boyle’s flickering civilization, the weather itself becomes the crucible of a mother’s love for her daughter. —

Marc Weingarten, Los Angeles Times, 11 May 2023 After mixing the precursors, another robot parcels out the mix into a set of crucibles, which are loaded into furnaces where they can be mixed with gases such as nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen. —

Byrobert F. Service, science.org, 20 Apr. 2023 From this urban crucible, RWI harnessed the power of high-profile influencers to redefine the boundaries of high-profile events and social media marketing. —

Jon Stojan, USA TODAY, 13 July 2023 This onetime actor turned president is leading his country in conflict with a nuclear superpower, becoming a crucible of history. —

James Hibberd, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Aug. 2023 For some of these characters, that’s a terrifying prospect, of course, but for others, already broiling in the crucible of their own shame, a future sterilized by cataclysm is weirdly attractive. —

Ron Charles, Washington Post, 22 Aug. 2023 Small companies can be hugely important idea crucibles and become quickly successful, but are the most vulnerable to macroeconomic headwinds. —

Rachel Shin, Fortune, 12 Aug. 2023 Our understanding of conservatives, liberals, radicals, and socialists was formed in the crucible of revolution. —

James Robins, The New Republic, 8 Aug. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'crucible.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.