as in to crack
to yield to mental or emotional stress
rather than melt down, the team strengthened their resolve and ended up winning the game
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in tailspin
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
2
as in collapse
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of meltdown
R. Eric Thomas, Denver Post, 7 Sep. 2025
The cancellations left travelers stranded, most notably during the summer of 2022 and the holiday meltdown that same year.
—AFAR Media, 5 Sep. 2025
Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 22 July 2025
The Guard in 1992 arrived in a city that had melted down: More than 60 people died, 1,000 buildings burned and unrest stretched from City Hall to Hollywood, with whole swaths of South Los Angeles torn to shreds.
—Jim Newton, Mercury News, 12 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for meltdown
Verb
Avoiding another meltdown may not be the goal.
—R. Eric Thomas, Denver Post, 7 Sep. 2025
The cancellations left travelers stranded, most notably during the summer of 2022 and the holiday meltdown that same year.
—AFAR Media, 5 Sep. 2025
Noun
But over the weekend, as the world refused to move on from his administration’s bizarre handling of the Epstein files—which has led segments of his base to completely melt down—Trump went on a posting spree that was alarming, even by his own standards.
—Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 22 July 2025
The Guard in 1992 arrived in a city that had melted down: More than 60 people died, 1,000 buildings burned and unrest stretched from City Hall to Hollywood, with whole swaths of South Los Angeles torn to shreds.
—Jim Newton, Mercury News, 12 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for meltdown
Recent Examples of Synonyms for meltdown
Verb
-
Even some of the most successful K-pop artists in America have yet to crack one of Billboard’s radio lists, or to land a major win.—
Hugh McIntyre,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Thanks to the flaw, the hackers were able to crack the credentials and gain administrative privileges to accounts on Ascension’s Microsoft Active Directory server, which can be harnessed to manage user accounts and applications over a company’s network.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
But modern-day challenges have forced leaders into a tailspin and turned leadership into a losing game.—
Dr. Adil Dalal,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
-
The potential appointment of Stephen Miran , a Trump nominee who has his Senate Banking Committee hearing scheduled on Sept. 4, could also throw Wall Street into a tailspin next week.—
Sarah Min,
CNBC,
29 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Crypto bubbles lead to crypto collapses.—
Sasha Rogelberg,
Fortune,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Despite those gains, the group still recorded a net loss of $517 million, largely due to the collapse of the Capri acquisition and a write-down at Kate Spade.—
Kate Hardcastle,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
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But that possibility is literally dynamited in a vision Daria has of the home abruptly blown to smithereens, the destruction replayed in slo-mo to the crashing squeals of early Pink Floyd, itself a collapse of psychedelic rock’s utopian ideals into acid-casualty freak-out.—
Jake Cole,
IndieWire,
18 Aug. 2025
-
The dog remained unfazed during Fowler's minor freak-out.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 July 2025
Noun
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Recently published studies about people affected by the Maui and Los Angeles fires showed that beyond affecting heart and lung function and interrupting access to medical care, these climate disasters have led to higher rates of depression and even suicide.—
Lahari Vuppaladhadiam,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Sep. 2025
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As someone who evacuated but was still directly impacted by the storm, Shepard used her lived experience to influence her research on colonial disasters.—
Essence,
Essence,
5 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Originally published in 1961, the novel follows Josephine, a young woman on the edge of a nervous breakdown.—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
19 Aug. 2025
-
Then there was Spark’s nervous breakdown in January 1954.—
Judith Shulevitz,
The Atlantic,
10 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
There is one hint of the bloodbath to come, as the film opens in Osaka, where a yakuza boss insists that three of his men chop off a digit of their hands in order to prove their loyalty.—
Peter Debruge,
Variety,
8 Sep. 2025
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What’s most impressive is how On the Road turns a boilerplate genre scenario — and one that doesn’t skimp on a bloodbath at the end — into a movie that grows increasingly emotional as things get exponentially worse for its main characters.—
Jordan Mintzer,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In the clip, the pair execute the moves to the song’s post-chorus, before a bonnet-wearing Colbert pretends to choke on something, causing Gaga to erupt in laughter.—
Stephen Daw,
Billboard,
10 Sep. 2025
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Luckily, the police department had recently brought in a CPR specialist who taught officers how to save choking children.—
Abigail Adams,
PEOPLE,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Meltdown.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/meltdown. Accessed 12 Sep. 2025.
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