Synonyms of cracking

cracking 1 of 3

adjective

ˈkra-kiŋ 

as in excellent

of the very best kind

a writer renowned for her cracking tales of mystery and suspense

Synonyms & Similar Words

• excellent
• great
• terrific
• superb
• wonderful
• fantastic
• lovely
• awesome
• stellar
• prime
• beautiful
• fabulous
• fine
• hot
• marvelous
• quality
• cool
• classic
• famous
• top
• topping
• slick
• swell
• neat
• sensational
• brave
• heavenly
• good
• splendid
• bumper
• divine
• sterling
• superior
• immense
• prize
• crackerjack
• keen
• par excellence
• banner
• grand
• choice
• first-rate
• first-class
• fab
• exceptional
• dynamite
• unsurpassed
• superlative
• top-notch
• down
• dope
• corking
• gone
• groovy
• high-class
• peachy
• boss
• out of this world
• decent
• top-shelf
• number one
• blue-ribbon
• tip-top
• mean
• frontline
• radical
• too much
• bang-up
• bully
• nifty
• dandy
• noble
• capital
• topflight
• out-of-sight
• blue-chip
• wizard
• first-string
• better
• gangbusters
• brag
• supernal
• A1
• primo
• satisfactory
• prizewinning
• hype
• fantabulous
• peachy keen
• adequate
• righteous
• special
• bonny
• acceptable
• A-OK
• boffo
• top-of-the-line
• phat
• numero uno
• five-star
• gilt-edged
• all right
• classical
• tolerable
• jim-dandy
• traditional
• passable
• four-star
• fancy
• OK
• premium
• high-grade
• select
• high-test
• standard
• superfine

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• poor
• terrible
• rotten
• awful
• pathetic
• lousy
• atrocious
• wretched
• vile
• bad
• inferior
• unsatisfactory
• substandard
• low-grade
• execrable
• mediocre
• middling
• second-class
• second-rate

cracking

2 of 3

adverb

as in extremely

to a great degree

tells a cracking good tale of a search for a lost city

Synonyms & Similar Words

• extremely
• very
• damn
• incredibly
• terribly
• damned
• too
• highly
• badly
• so
• really
• seriously
• severely
• jolly
• desperately
• super
• real
• full
• far
• especially
• that
• rattling
• greatly
• thumping
• whacking
• wildly
• heavily
• passing
• most
• bone
• roaring
• intensely
• much
• such
• mighty
• particularly
• fiercely
• good and
• exceptionally
• wicked
• extra
• specially
• awful
• way
• spanking
• absolutely
• sore
• corking
• dang
• fantastically
• immensely
• exceedingly
• awfully
• totally
• fabulously
• deadly
• hugely
• uncommonly
• thoroughly
• a lot
• completely
• monstrous
• remarkably
• achingly
• supremely
• vitally
• eminently
• frightfully
• almighty
• utterly
• enormously
• mortally
• sorely
• ever
• beastly
• roaringly
• stinking
• positively
• surpassingly
• archly
• as all get-out
• filthy
• blisteringly
• deeply
• majorly
• vastly
• right
• mightily
• significantly
• entirely
• colossally
• visibly
• noticeably
• unco
• considerably
• fully
• wholly
• downright
• flat-out
• substantially
• notably
• obviously
• radically
• purely
• profoundly
• extensively
• markedly
• palpably
• altogether
• discernibly
• appreciably
• plainly
• excessively
• monumentally
• plentifully
• obscenely
• astronomically
• astonishingly
• grandly
• abundantly
• amazingly
• monstrously
• staggeringly
• overmuch

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• little
• slightly
• somewhat
• nominally
• just
• negligibly
• barely
• hardly
• scarcely
• marginally
• minimally
• scantily
• meagerly

cracking

3 of 3

verb

present participle of crack

1

as in popping

to break suddenly with an explosive sound

the tree branch unexpectedly cracked under our weight

Synonyms & Similar Words

• popping
• snapping
• splitting
• crackling
• exploding
• shattering
• bursting
• hissing
• clicking
• sputtering
• rending
• clattering
• sizzling
• riving
• clacking

2

as in choking

to yield to mental or emotional stress

after hours of tough questioning the suspect finally cracked and blurted out a confession

Synonyms & Similar Words

• choking
• losing it
• melting down
• falling apart
• going to pieces
• flipping (out)
• freaking (out)
• wigging (out)
• breaking down
• breaking up
• going off the deep end
• blowing one's cool

3

as in deciphering

to change (as a secret message) from code into ordinary language

the United States military used the Navajo language as a code during World War II, and the enemy never cracked it

Synonyms & Similar Words

• deciphering
• breaking
• decoding
• decrypting
• solving
• translating
• rendering
• unraveling
• working
• figuring out
• unscrambling
• working out
• descrambling
• doping (out)
• puzzling (out)
• unriddling

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• coding
• encoding
• encrypting
• ciphering
• mixing (up)
• enciphering
• garbling
• jumbling (up)

4

as in knocking

to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner

cracked the bow of the ship with a champagne bottle

Synonyms & Similar Words

• knocking
• smacking
• slapping
• hitting
• banging
• slamming
• punching
• pounding
• clapping
• whacking
• striking
• clipping
• swiping
• kicking
• batting
• thumping
• hammering
• nailing
• tapping
• bashing
• poking
• licking
• pushing
• thwacking
• rapping
• shoving
• boxing
• bobbing
• busting
• flicking
• jabbing
• chopping
• swatting
• slugging
• clouting
• zapping
• tagging
• clobbering
• bopping
• socking
• smiting
• pasting
• clocking
• bludgeoning
• bumping
• bonking
• belting
• stabbing
• biffing
• slogging
• walloping
• stroking
• beating
• whaling
• battering
• scuffing
• pummeling
• stamping
• mangling
• mauling
• peppering
• hanging one on
• cuffing
• slashing
• pelting
• whipping
• buffeting
• lashing
• jostling
• dumping
• roughing
• butting
• bunging
• prodding
• lambasting
• drubbing
• decking
• lacing
• creaming
• sapping
• switching
• bunting
• kneeing
• felling
• pommeling
• flogging
• thrashing
• flailing
• spearing
• clubbing
• knocking down
• flooring
• bowling (down or over)
• leveling
• cudgeling
• caning
• sledgehammering
• sledging
• braining
• sucker punching
• conking
• skulling
• rabbit-punching
• beaning

5

as in solving

to find an answer for through reasoning

I've been mulling this riddle, but I just can't crack it

Synonyms & Similar Words

• solving
• unraveling
• answering
• resolving
• working
• deciphering
• breaking
• figuring out
• working out
• doping (out)
• puzzling (out)
• riddling (out)
• concluding
• deciding
• unriddling
• gathering
• reasoning
• deducing
• judging
• inferring
• guessing
• straightening (out)
• speculating
• untangling
• clearing (up)
• ironing out
• decoding
• assuming
• divining
• untying
• presuming
• conjecturing
• unscrambling

6

as in bothering

to cause to go insane or as if insane

cracked by years in solitary confinement, the prisoner could only maunder incoherently

Synonyms & Similar Words

• bothering
• crazing
• disturbing
• distracting
• unbalancing
• unhinging
• upsetting
• maddening
• unsettling
• annoying
• deranging
• confusing
• frenzying
• irritating
• locoing
• unstringing
• disquieting
• perturbing
• agitating
• discomposing
• vexing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• settling
• relaxing
• soothing
• calming
• quieting
• tranquilizing

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of cracking

Adjective

The study published in the journal Construction and Building Materials also revealed that the triangular and wavy forms significantly enhanced the beam's ability to handle post-cracking stress. — New Atlas, 10 Apr. 2026

Another uninspired performance coupled with a a heavy defeat may well spell the end for the Basque manager at the Emirates, so this fixture should have plenty of undertones and be a cracking game of football. — SI.com, 28 Oct. 2019

His fortunes finally turned back Wednesday, when van Garderen laid down a cracking time trial at the Tour of California. — sacbee, 16 May 2018

Verb

An April 2026 Google whitepaper put cracking Bitcoin's elliptic-curve cryptography at fewer than 500,000. — Boaz Sobrado, Forbes.com, 2 Aug. 2026

ScreenshotA complaint that appears to have been filed on July 8, 2021, through the county's SeeClickFix, or 311, online reporting system described cracking and chipping concrete pillars in the building's underground parking garage. — Drew Aunkst, CBS News, 31 July 2026

That Lane, an animal lover who excels at cracking open crazy stories with humor, heart, and a litany of perspectives, would follow Flaco is no surprise. — Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 30 July 2026

He’s handpainted, too, and made from high-density resin that resists cracking, fading, and breakage. — Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 July 2026

Euphoric players cavorting in disbelief, long-suffering fans crumpling to their knees in tears, commentators’ voices cracking at the drama of it all. — Conor O'Neill, New York Times, 27 July 2026

As part of the last step to cracking the cold case, direct DNA testing confirmed Edwards’ identity. — Chris Boyette, CNN Money, 25 July 2026

Although braids wind their way into many different areas of science, from protein folding to string theory, simply cracking the century-old case was enough of a reward for the trio. — Lyndie Chiou, Scientific American, 24 July 2026

The downloads also include password-cracking tools that can be used by hackers to break into people’s accounts. — Alex Reisner, The Atlantic, 24 July 2026

Phrases Containing cracking

• get cracking