1
as in shortage
a falling short of an essential or desirable amount or number
a severe energy crunch that resulted in long lines at the gas pumps
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in crisis
a time or state of affairs requiring prompt or decisive action
a player who's always good in a crunch, like when we need a goal to win the soccer match
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of crunch
Erin Hooker, Better Homes & Gardens, 3 July 2025
Cuts to jobs, TANK, travel all in the works
The board of education has announced a slew of cost-cutting measures in response to its budget crunch.
—Jolene Almendarez, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025
Boaz Sobrado, Forbes.com, 5 July 2025
It was never built to handle models that devour gigabytes of creative work, crunch it into statistical patterns, and use that substrate to generate eerily familiar prose.
—Aron Solomon
june 27, Literary Hub, 27 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for crunch
Noun
The sweet corn adds crunch and the plums impart a sweetness that perfectly complements the basil.
—Erin Hooker, Better Homes & Gardens, 3 July 2025
Cuts to jobs, TANK, travel all in the works
The board of education has announced a slew of cost-cutting measures in response to its budget crunch.
—Jolene Almendarez, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025
Verb
Rather than hiring teams of PhD-level analysts to crunch numbers and identify market patterns, firms are increasingly turning to AI systems that can process vast amounts of information in seconds and deliver insights in plain English.
—Boaz Sobrado, Forbes.com, 5 July 2025
It was never built to handle models that devour gigabytes of creative work, crunch it into statistical patterns, and use that substrate to generate eerily familiar prose.
—Aron Solomon
june 27, Literary Hub, 27 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for crunch
Recent Examples of Synonyms for crunch
Noun
-
Spain, to cite but one example, has a housing shortage and is currently considering levying a 100% tax on foreign buyers of real estate.—
William P. Barrett,
Forbes.com,
19 July 2025
-
California already faces some of the highest housing costs in the country and a shortage of construction workers.—
Umair Irfan,
Wired News,
19 July 2025
Noun
-
Things happen, our heroes react, a potentially world-ending crisis is easily averted and everything is wrapped up in time for dinner.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
26 July 2025
-
Yet this rift still coincides with a deepening fiscal crisis.—
Joël Té-Léssia Assoko,
semafor.com,
25 July 2025
Verb
-
Opened by chef Alisa Reynolds in 2013, the restaurant became a neighborhood favorite thanks to a Southern comfort menu that’s informed by Reynolds’ L.A. upbringing, including turkey meatloaf, grit fries and BLT sandwiches with fried green tomatoes.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
8 July 2025
-
Perhaps our best hope right now might be to grit our teeth about AGI as a north star, push the AI community to realize the dangers and pitfalls therein, and do our darnedest to overcome the downsides.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
4 July 2025
Noun
-
The person denied being responsible for the noose, police said, noting that due to a lack of eyewitnesses and legal probable cause, no charges are expected against the person, who will not be allowed to return for any type of stadium construction.—
Craig Shoup,
Nashville Tennessean,
24 July 2025
-
And the Covid episode itself--when inflation hit 9% before the Fed finally began hiking dramatically--remains a major point of concern about the institution’s lack of intellectual diversity.—
Kelly Evans,
CNBC,
24 July 2025
Noun
-
Delimitros said one of the truck’s side view mirrors struck her in the head, causing minor injuries.—
David Hernandez,
sandiegouniontribune.com,
19 July 2017
-
Cal Fire representatives said the current parking mess has already impacted them because the driveway to their station enters the highway not far from the trail head.—
J. Harry Jones,
Ramona Sentinel,
19 July 2017
Verb
-
Gently scrape away any hardened material with a butter knife.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
12 July 2025
-
There are 616 McDonald's restaurants in Ohio, according to the web scraping tool ScrapeHero.—
Chad Murphy,
The Enquirer,
10 July 2025
Verb
-
Cruz has barely scratched the surface of his potential.—
Zach Pressnell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 July 2025
-
Take, for example, Soiree Miami Beach, a luxurious swimwear brand made with sparkly materials that don’t scratch, or Wanahat, a stylish hat brand founded by three Ecuadorian childhood friends.—
Rana Good,
Forbes.com,
14 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Crunch.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crunch. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share