as in crisis
a time or state of affairs requiring prompt or decisive action
with only three minutes left in the game, it was definitely crunch time
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of crunch time
James had 26 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds, but Antetokoumpo got the best of the top scorer in NBA history at crunch time.
—
CBS News, 10 Jan. 2026
The guild nominees and the BAFTA longlista have narrowed the field to a degree, but with so many people in town and so little time to get them in front of Oscar voters, this is crunch time, and campaign consultants are wasting no time doing just that.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 9 Jan. 2026
However, the 6-foot-4 senior guard, who picked up two early fouls and did not score in 10 minutes the initial half, also committed a pivotal mistake during crunch time that helped the Knights hold off the Jayhawks 81-75.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 3 Jan. 2026
During that same year, Green was caught arguing with then-teammate Kevin Durant after not passing Durant the ball during crunch time of a game against the Clippers.
—Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 23 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for crunch time
CBS News, 10 Jan. 2026
The guild nominees and the BAFTA longlista have narrowed the field to a degree, but with so many people in town and so little time to get them in front of Oscar voters, this is crunch time, and campaign consultants are wasting no time doing just that.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 9 Jan. 2026
However, the 6-foot-4 senior guard, who picked up two early fouls and did not score in 10 minutes the initial half, also committed a pivotal mistake during crunch time that helped the Knights hold off the Jayhawks 81-75.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 3 Jan. 2026
During that same year, Green was caught arguing with then-teammate Kevin Durant after not passing Durant the ball during crunch time of a game against the Clippers.
—Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 23 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for crunch time
Recent Examples of Synonyms for crunch time
Noun
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On Tuesday, the US Embassy in Havana urged American citizens in Cuba to take precautions amid the energy crisis by conserving fuel, water, food and charging their phones.—
Bianna Golodryga,
CNN Money,
5 Feb. 2026
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Nigeria is in the grip of a complex security crisis, with an insurgency by Islamic militants in the northeast alongside a surge in kidnappings for ransom by gunmen across the northwest and north-central regions over recent months.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Chinese companies have excelled at rapid deployment in consumer-facing applications and integrating AI into industrial use, said Deepika Giri, head of AI research at market research firm IDC.—
John Liu,
CNN Money,
11 Feb. 2026
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At one point, the individual appears to tilt their head away from a doorbell camera, hold a flashlight in their mouth and attempt to cover the lens with a gloved hand and what looked like part of a plant pulled from the yard.—
Bradford Betz , Matt Finn,
FOXNews.com,
11 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Windows is at breaking point, and Microsoft knows it.—
Tom Warren,
The Verge,
29 Jan. 2026
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Harbaugh, in 18 years, won a Super Bowl, and the Ravens were perennially in the playoff picture, but his inability to beat a Steelers’ squad in a game in which his tight end dropped a two-point conversion, and his rookie kicker missed the game-winning field goal, was the breaking point.—
Gladys Louise Tyler,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Over 30 years ago, Los Angeles reached a boiling point following the acquittal of four police officers who brutally beat Rodney King.—
Okla Jones,
Essence,
1 Feb. 2026
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Mulier ultimately heated up the house to the boiling point with original, inventive designs, giving an experimental, modernist spin to Alaïa’s legacy of empowering, feminine and sculptural fashions.—
Miles Socha,
Footwear News,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The incident became a flash point in ongoing debates over whether immigration officials had gone too far in detaining a young boy.—
Alicia Victoria Lozano,
NBC news,
6 Feb. 2026
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Minneapolis has become a flash point for clashes between federal immigration enforcement agents and agitators, particularly after the shooting deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.—
Michael Dorgan,
FOXNews.com,
6 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Crunch time.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crunch%20time. Accessed 11 Feb. 2026.
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