1
as in to tumble
to fall down or in as a result of physical pressure
the motel balcony collapsed under the weight of so many people
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to fail
to be unsuccessful
the legal case collapsed in the face of the opposition's evidence
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to compress
to reduce in size or volume by or as if by pressing parts or members together
the novel collapses events from four separate trips into one long odyssey
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in exhaustion
a complete depletion of energy or strength
suffered a mental collapse under the strain of studying for his bar exam
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in defeat
a falling short of one's goals
the complete collapse of the invasion set off a round of finger-pointing and recrimination
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of collapse
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 4 Apr. 2026
The person left the apartment not long after but collapsed.
—Jose Fabian, CBS News, 4 Apr. 2026
Tom Dougherty, CBS News, 9 Apr. 2026
The station cited Parker as saying that eight permits were properly issued, and all inspections were up to date and that the collapse happened when a roof segment being installed by a subcontractor failed.
—Greg Norman-Diamond, FOXNews.com, 9 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for collapse
Verb
The credibility of the FBI analyst who testified about the matching hairs collapsed, along with any faith in hair analysis as a reliable forensic tool.
—Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 4 Apr. 2026
The person left the apartment not long after but collapsed.
—Jose Fabian, CBS News, 4 Apr. 2026
Noun
Updates on the collapse will be posted on the city of Philadelphia's website.
—Tom Dougherty, CBS News, 9 Apr. 2026
The station cited Parker as saying that eight permits were properly issued, and all inspections were up to date and that the collapse happened when a roof segment being installed by a subcontractor failed.
—Greg Norman-Diamond, FOXNews.com, 9 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for collapse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for collapse
Verb
-
Adell had just stolen a home run, tumbling over the waist-high wall near the right-field foul pole, which frames the left side of the photo.—
Tyler Kepner,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2026
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Shares tumbled nearly 2% after the stock was downgraded by Bank of America to neutral from buy.—
Davis Giangiulio,
CNBC,
6 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Minnesota had another power-play chance after Rantanen's slashing penalty with 2 1/2 minutes left, but failed to score even with an extra skater after pulling Filip Gustavsson out of the net.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
11 Apr. 2026
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But that figure predates major advances in cleanup technology and fails to account for available state and federal funding.—
Charles Rilli,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The video compresses nearly an hour of totality into a short sequence, showing the precise alignment of the sun, moon and spacecraft, as the Artemis 2 crew flew around the far side of the moon on April 6.—
Samantha Mathewson,
Space.com,
10 Apr. 2026
-
This one compresses a century of change into a decade.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
10 Apr. 2026
Noun
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But if span-of-control inflation is so severe that managers can’t do the expert part of their job either, the model risks producing neither efficiency nor mentorship, just exhaustion.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
7 Apr. 2026
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Little matchsticks lie flat on its surface, and then suddenly pop up and jitter across its surface, only to fall again, in seeming exhaustion.—
Shanti Escalante-De Mattei,
ARTnews.com,
6 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
One night after his team squandered three separate leads in an overtime defeat at Utah, McDavid delivered the kind of performance Edmonton needed.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Check out the vibes following defeats.—
Roderick Boone,
Charlotte Observer,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
About a decade ago, a group of competitive CrossFitters in Charleston, South Carolina, went looking for ways to improve their athletic performance without taking steroids.—
Dhruv Khullar,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
-
The paying public went from raucous to delirious on the next possession, when Curry raced downcourt and splashed a triple off the dribble.—
Joseph Dycus,
Mercury News,
6 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Why Frederick Jackson Turner’s Frontier Thesis initially flopped.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
1 Apr. 2026
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After beating Atlanta last Friday without Jaylen Brown and Charlotte on Sunday without Brown and Derrick White, Boston flopped in a rematch with the Hawks, losing 112-102 without a crew of contributors headlined by a resting Jayson Tatum.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Skiers and snowboarders trying to squeeze the last bits of winter fun from Colorado‘s meager snowpack will have one less option after this week, with Vail Resort set to close 11 days sooner than planned.—
Katie Langford,
Denver Post,
4 Apr. 2026
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The disruption has not only sent fuel prices soaring, but has squeezed supplies of petrochemicals needed to make everyday items like shoes, clothing and plastic bags.—
Stephanie Yang,
CNN Money,
4 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Collapse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/collapse. Accessed 11 Apr. 2026.
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