1
as in shortages
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 crises
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
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Recent Examples of crunches
Jenny McCoy, Outside, 23 Mar. 2026
Loop-style resistance bands are usable for standing knee tucks, bicycle crunches, side planks, spiderman push-ups and other core exercises.
—Bestreviews, Mercury News, 23 Mar. 2026
What are the benefits of doing crunches?
—Daryl Austin, USA Today, 15 Mar. 2026
Add crab walking into your routine alongside your normal core circuits alongside your crunches or planks.
—Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 27 Jan. 2026
Striking the right balance between rest and preparation can be difficult in time crunches like the one Shanahan currently faces.
—Noah Furtado, San Francisco Chronicle, 14 Jan. 2026
The whole thing crunches, melts, zings and primes the taste buds for more.
—Bill Addison, Los Angeles Times, 2 Jan. 2026
Though Jackson acknowledged that those time crunches can be stressful, being rude isn't the way to go.
—Natalia Senanayake, PEOPLE, 31 Dec. 2025
Some of the best exercises for a stronger core include crunches, teasers, planks, and body-weight squats.
—Health Editorial Team, Health, 20 Dec. 2025
Los Angeles Times, 1 Jan. 2026
Energage administers an employee survey that covers 26 factors and then crunches the feedback data and scores companies based on the responses.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 Nov. 2025
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB), the nonpartisan budget watchdog that regularly crunches numbers on policy impacts on the $38 trillion national debt, included $50 billion as one estimate in a series of projections published in early November.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 24 Nov. 2025
Each year, Google crunches the numbers to identify the items that were highly searched, newly searched, or trending for a period of time from May to September.
—Averi Baudler, PEOPLE, 4 Nov. 2025
Nguyen Nik Bonitto shoves the Jets' left tackle back into Justin Fields and Zach Allen crunches him from the interior on that third-down floater.
—Joe Nguyen, Denver Post, 12 Oct. 2025
The website then crunches the numbers to see if your toilet paper stash will be enough to last the full length of the specified quarantine.
—Michael Dobuski, ABC News, 27 Mar. 2020
Noun
Unlike other common ab exercises, such as crunches and sit-ups, that primarily just work your rectus abdominis (the front-side ab muscles that form a six pack), planks engage multiple core muscles at once.
—Jenny McCoy, Outside, 23 Mar. 2026
Loop-style resistance bands are usable for standing knee tucks, bicycle crunches, side planks, spiderman push-ups and other core exercises.
—Bestreviews, Mercury News, 23 Mar. 2026
What are the benefits of doing crunches?
—Daryl Austin, USA Today, 15 Mar. 2026
Add crab walking into your routine alongside your normal core circuits alongside your crunches or planks.
—Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 27 Jan. 2026
Striking the right balance between rest and preparation can be difficult in time crunches like the one Shanahan currently faces.
—Noah Furtado, San Francisco Chronicle, 14 Jan. 2026
The whole thing crunches, melts, zings and primes the taste buds for more.
—Bill Addison, Los Angeles Times, 2 Jan. 2026
Though Jackson acknowledged that those time crunches can be stressful, being rude isn't the way to go.
—Natalia Senanayake, PEOPLE, 31 Dec. 2025
Some of the best exercises for a stronger core include crunches, teasers, planks, and body-weight squats.
—Health Editorial Team, Health, 20 Dec. 2025
Verb
Each month, Edward Flores crunches the numbers.
—Los Angeles Times, 1 Jan. 2026
Energage administers an employee survey that covers 26 factors and then crunches the feedback data and scores companies based on the responses.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 Nov. 2025
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB), the nonpartisan budget watchdog that regularly crunches numbers on policy impacts on the $38 trillion national debt, included $50 billion as one estimate in a series of projections published in early November.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 24 Nov. 2025
Each year, Google crunches the numbers to identify the items that were highly searched, newly searched, or trending for a period of time from May to September.
—Averi Baudler, PEOPLE, 4 Nov. 2025
Nguyen Nik Bonitto shoves the Jets' left tackle back into Justin Fields and Zach Allen crunches him from the interior on that third-down floater.
—Joe Nguyen, Denver Post, 12 Oct. 2025
The website then crunches the numbers to see if your toilet paper stash will be enough to last the full length of the specified quarantine.
—Michael Dobuski, ABC News, 27 Mar. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for crunches
Noun
-
Analysts partially credit the stability to a mature domestic biofuels industry that allows the country to withstand geopolitical shocks with minimal risk of fuel shortages.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Aluminum prices hit a four‑year high as Iranian strikes on Middle Eastern producers stoke fears of supply shortages.—
Lim Hui Jie,
CNBC,
31 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
This broader competition is already reshaping how countries respond to crises.—
Derek Chollet,
semafor.com,
25 Mar. 2026
-
There are always crises to manage and factions to pacify.—
Silas Allen,
Dallas Morning News,
24 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
To show me, Max reaches a metal pick into a tank of clear water and scrapes a white line that seems to hover in the center of the tank.—
Blair Braverman,
Outside,
3 Mar. 2026
-
Meyer helped design a tracking system that scrapes data from Zillow to detect price hikes greater than 10%.—
Jack Flemming,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
As of Wednesday, firearms dealers are required under state law to use scanners that pull the prospective purchaser’s name, date of birth and other details from the card’s magnetic strip, which the new design lacks — except if they are authorized otherwise.—
Madison Smalstig,
Sacbee.com,
25 Feb. 2026
-
Each provides amino acids that the other lacks, so eating them together gives you all the essential amino acids.—
Merve Ceylan,
Health,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar have each worked hard to be seen as the crossroads for business, politics and innovation, hosting global sporting events from Formula 1 to high-stakes boxing championships and top-tier golf tournaments.—
Emma Graham,
CNBC,
25 Mar. 2026
-
Shoulder surgery and a months-long rehab at this point in his career puts him at a crossroads, but the early signals from his recovery look positive.—
Samantha Agate,
Kansas City Star,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
On September 30th, a few days after the attack, Loomer called out Tim Cook and Sundar Pichai, the heads of Apple and Google, for making such programs available.—
Oriana van Praag,
New Yorker,
28 Mar. 2026
-
The players in this for the long haul — Matas Buzelis, Tre Jones, Patrick Williams and Giddey — are still wrapping their heads around the next steps for a rebuild.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Crunches.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crunches. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
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