as in hissing
to make a series of short, sharp noises
The logs crackled in the fire. The leaves crackled under our feet. a crackling fire
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of crackling
What never occurred to me was the need to explicitly ban vaping until my date casually produced a crackling Juul mid-screening.
—
Ana Gutierrez, Austin American Statesman, 10 Feb. 2026
At night, gather in front of a crackling fire for pre-dinner drinks in the drawing room, which is filled with illustrations of Parisian opera stars, antique finds, and Monopoly.
—Harriet Compston, Condé Nast Traveler, 9 Feb. 2026
That crackling atmosphere was clear to see when The Athletic attended Friday night’s match against struggling Le Havre, with the city taken over by a sea of red and gold before the game and Lens’ supporters then bouncing up and down in the stands for the entire contest.
—Tom Burrows, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2026
There are weak patches, but the four actors (Wilde, MVP Seth Rogen, Edward Norton and Penélope Cruz) keep it buoyant, with a crackling energy that makes the endless streams of overlapping talk play like jazz.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 31 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for crackling
Ana Gutierrez, Austin American Statesman, 10 Feb. 2026
At night, gather in front of a crackling fire for pre-dinner drinks in the drawing room, which is filled with illustrations of Parisian opera stars, antique finds, and Monopoly.
—Harriet Compston, Condé Nast Traveler, 9 Feb. 2026
That crackling atmosphere was clear to see when The Athletic attended Friday night’s match against struggling Le Havre, with the city taken over by a sea of red and gold before the game and Lens’ supporters then bouncing up and down in the stands for the entire contest.
—Tom Burrows, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2026
There are weak patches, but the four actors (Wilde, MVP Seth Rogen, Edward Norton and Penélope Cruz) keep it buoyant, with a crackling energy that makes the endless streams of overlapping talk play like jazz.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 31 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for crackling
Recent Examples of Synonyms for crackling
Verb
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Rising from the center of the bay is a Star Wars-style cockpit, neon-lit and hissing as the door opens to reveal a dashboard equipped with self-flying software.—
Noelle Harff,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Feb. 2026
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Meanwhile, the Bronx Zoo in New York has revived its annual tradition of naming one of the zoo’s thousands of Madagascar hissing cockroaches for $15.—
Julian Torres,
CNN Money,
14 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Instead, attendees showed each other support by rustling their signs.—
Ilana Arougheti,
Kansas City Star,
3 Mar. 2026
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Maybe light or noise filters into your room, or your partner starts rustling or snoring around the same time early each morning.—
Erica Sloan,
SELF,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
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With the majority of their big-league starting lineup competing in the World Baseball Classic, the offense is sputtering big-time.—
Gabrielle Starr,
Boston Herald,
6 Mar. 2026
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After some false starts, a windfall came when David Geffen, the longtime contemporary art collector, made his historic pledge in 2017, injecting some excitement into a campaign that had been sputtering.—
Nate Freeman,
Vanity Fair,
6 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Crackling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crackling. Accessed 12 Mar. 2026.
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