Verb
She crumpled the piece of paper into a ball and tossed it into the garbage can.
The car's fender was crumpled in the accident.
At the sight of blood, he crumpled to the floor.
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
It’s mostly crumpled, but four classrooms are partially standing.—Anas Baba, NPR, 4 June 2024 On the night of Dec. 31, 1975, after the family had gone to bed, White crumpled up some newspaper, placed it next to the family’s Christmas tree and set it on fire.—Katie Wiseman, The Indianapolis Star, 3 Apr. 2024
Noun
Unlike the Earth, our celestial companion lacks plate tectonics, so its brittle crust crumples into unstable ridges called thrust faults to accommodate its dwindling volume.—Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 Feb. 2024 Each card makes the fire burn a little brighter, a burst of light and memory as the paper singes and crumples.—Time, 12 July 2023 See all Example Sentences for crumple
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'crumple.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Verb
Middle English crumplen, frequentative of Middle English crumpen
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