as in failing
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Dissimilar Words
1
as in crumpling
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in flopping
to be unsuccessful
the legal case collapsed in the face of the opposition's evidence
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in compressing
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
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of collapsing
Evan Bush, NBC news, 9 Apr. 2026
Video footage from the apartment complex showed Kirkland speaking to several people in the Jeep before backing away and collapsing, the court document said.
—Caroline Zimmerman, Kansas City Star, 9 Apr. 2026
The collapse of an under-construction parking garage in Grays Ferry Wednesday afternoon appears to be what experts call a pancake collapse, with several floors collapsing on to one another.
—Kaitlyn McCormick, USA Today, 9 Apr. 2026
Vann instantly explodes, then runs off into the distance, making it across the street before collapsing to the ground where a resident tried to help him with damp towels.
—Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 7 Apr. 2026
The victim was seen running away before collapsing on the sidewalk.
—Tara Lynch, CBS News, 5 Apr. 2026
Instead of collapsing indefinitely or evaporating completely through Hawking radiation, the black hole reaches a stable state.
—Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 4 Apr. 2026
The industry was at risk of collapsing—until the physical chemist Fritz Haber, at the behest of the German Supreme Command, managed to take a common by-product of dye manufacture and weaponize it.
—Literary Hub, 2 Apr. 2026
After collapsing last year, the stock has nearly doubled off its November low.
—Jim Cramer, CNBC, 2 Apr. 2026
Verb
For three years after the outbreak, Mitani and his collaborator, Aaron Sandel, an associate professor of anthropology at the University of Texas, documented the collapsing social bonds between the sets of chimps.
—Evan Bush, NBC news, 9 Apr. 2026
Video footage from the apartment complex showed Kirkland speaking to several people in the Jeep before backing away and collapsing, the court document said.
—Caroline Zimmerman, Kansas City Star, 9 Apr. 2026
The collapse of an under-construction parking garage in Grays Ferry Wednesday afternoon appears to be what experts call a pancake collapse, with several floors collapsing on to one another.
—Kaitlyn McCormick, USA Today, 9 Apr. 2026
Vann instantly explodes, then runs off into the distance, making it across the street before collapsing to the ground where a resident tried to help him with damp towels.
—Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 7 Apr. 2026
The victim was seen running away before collapsing on the sidewalk.
—Tara Lynch, CBS News, 5 Apr. 2026
Instead of collapsing indefinitely or evaporating completely through Hawking radiation, the black hole reaches a stable state.
—Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 4 Apr. 2026
The industry was at risk of collapsing—until the physical chemist Fritz Haber, at the behest of the German Supreme Command, managed to take a common by-product of dye manufacture and weaponize it.
—Literary Hub, 2 Apr. 2026
After collapsing last year, the stock has nearly doubled off its November low.
—Jim Cramer, CNBC, 2 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for collapsing
Adjective
-
The state graded the campus an F for three consecutive years, meaning two more failing grades could trigger an intervention.—
Noah Alcala Bach,
San Antonio Express-News,
1 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Moses Moody scored 23 points before crumpling to the floor with an apparently serious left knee injury late in overtime as the Golden State Warriors beat Dallas 137-131 on Monday night, extending the Mavericks' home losing streak to 12 games, their longest in 32 years.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
24 Mar. 2026
-
The Material steak knives arrived sharp, slicing through a piece of paper rather than crumpling its edge.—
Emily Johnson,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Magnus shook his head, his damp hair flopping against the back of his neck.—
Ben Mezrich,
Vanity Fair,
6 Apr. 2026
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And who knows — the Warriors might have won Sunday if Porziņģis hadn’t fallen prey to Alpren Sengun’s flopping.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
6 Apr. 2026
Verb
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There’s so much data in the spoken word that gets lost when those words are converted to text — just like compressing an audio file into a fuzzy MP3 removes some of the music.—
Reed Albergotti,
semafor.com,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Several people compressing the traditional learning curve.—
Dana Harris-Bridson,
IndieWire,
2 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Most folding bookshelves are made from lightweight materials such as wood, bamboo or metal.—
BestReviews,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Mar. 2026
-
The three units feature the same folding action and design, but certain specs vary.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
14 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Case in point, the dramatic lobby installations from star florist and designer Jeff Leatham, which might include gorgeous, tumbling floral displays in the spring, or a giant plexiglass reindeer in the winter.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
11 Apr. 2026
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Salesforce fell for its fifth straight session on Friday, tumbling nearly 12% for the week.—
Morgan Chittum,
CNBC,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Dave Walton, a corn, soybean, and hay farmer in Iowa and vice president of the American Soybean Association, said in March that some of his neighbors didn’t have cash on hand last fall to buy fertilizer and were struggling to budget for fertilizer due to high prices.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
13 Apr. 2026
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But even a young woman struggling with the patriarchal conundrum of cool-girl syndrome (to be independent and accepted) might reveal more of a snappish turn of mind than Grace does.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
12 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The parents of a toddler who suffered a minor injury at a Pennsylvania theme park zoo after squeezing through a fence near a wolf enclosure and making contact with one of the animals have been charged with endangering the welfare of children, police said.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
7 Apr. 2026
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Every piece is so soft, almost like squeezing mini chunks of cotton candy.—
Nashia Baker,
Architectural Digest,
7 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Collapsing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/collapsing. Accessed 16 Apr. 2026.
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