as in crises
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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Recent Examples of crunch times
In crunch times, our duties overlap.
—
Jeanne Phillips, Mercury News, 18 Apr. 2026
Jeanne Phillips, Mercury News, 18 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for crunch times
Noun
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The ongoing crises of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, coupled with alcohol use, have made for a nightmarish liver landscape.—
Lev Facher,
STAT,
12 May 2026
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As with the previous 12 installments, where revenue served to support the shows’ out-of-work staff, the new episode’s proceeds will benefit the World Central Kitchen, an international nonprofit that provides meals during humanitarian crises.—
Natalie Oganesyan,
Deadline,
11 May 2026
Noun
-
The feature centers on two women — Yoriko (Takako Matsu), an artist living in rural Nagi, and her friend and former sister-in-law Yuri (Shizuka Ishibashi) — at a crossroads and searching for a way to move forward.—
Elaina Patton,
IndieWire,
12 May 2026
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The Sprinters Last July, Groenewegen’s career was at a mini-crossroads.—
Jacob Whitehead,
New York Times,
9 May 2026
Noun
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The intense temperature and pressure of the impact heated the moon's crust and mantle so much that many of the volatile elements present (volatiles are elements with low boiling points), including potassium, evaporated and escaped into space.—
Keith Cooper,
Space.com,
23 Jan. 2026
-
Thermodynamics drives selective recovery The researchers hypothesized that FJH combined with chlorine gas could exploit differences in Gibbs free energy and boiling points to selectively remove non-REE elements from magnet waste.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
29 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Despite the focus on the Middle East, the leaders took up major regional flash points, including the South China Sea territorial disputes involving Beijing, a five-year civil war in Myanmar and a recent border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia.—
Jim Gomez,
Los Angeles Times,
8 May 2026
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But more potential flash points loom.—
JILL LAWLESS THE ASSOCIATED PRESS,
Arkansas Online,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Jokanovic had collected 14 kills by the time the third set had ended, and one of them grazed the top of two Ball State defenders’ heads before hitting the court for the set-winner in the third frame.—
Haley Sawyer,
Oc Register,
10 May 2026
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Several talking heads mention Magyar’s temper.—
Andrew Marantz,
New Yorker,
9 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Crunch times.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crunch%20times. Accessed 14 May. 2026.
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