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
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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
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Recent Examples of crunches
Christa Sgobba, Health, 11 June 2026
That’s continuing ongoing supply crunches of helium, fertilizer, natural gas and oil, the effects of which are still winding their way through the global economy and the worst may not be felt for weeks, even if traffic were to reopen today.
—Alex Knapp, Forbes.com, 5 June 2026
If anything, the long-time executive knows that pending roster crunches often figure themselves out.
—Katie Woo, New York Times, 11 May 2026
The villain’s extensive exercise and grooming routines, including ice packs, a honey almond body scrub, and 1,000 crunches, have been stripped of their satirical intent and copied by young men.
—Fay Bound-Alberti, Time, 3 May 2026
The whistleblower claims that the museum improperly moved funds between various accounts in order to meet severe cash crunches.
—Brian Boucher, ARTnews.com, 29 Apr. 2026
In between glistening, shirtless crunches and sexy dalliances, Crown’s motives become clearer.
—Matt Donnelly, Variety, 16 Apr. 2026
Small Dining and Kitchen Solutions Kitchens and dining areas are where space crunches hit hardest.
—Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Sacbee.com, 14 Apr. 2026
And if investing in equipment isn’t an option, bodyweight exercises like squats, push-ups, lunges, crunches and planks engage multiple muscle groups and can be adapted for any fitness level.
—Daryl Austin, USA Today, 11 Apr. 2026
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
However, crunches are not a comprehensive measure of core strength and may increase injury risk for some people.
—Christa Sgobba, Health, 11 June 2026
That’s continuing ongoing supply crunches of helium, fertilizer, natural gas and oil, the effects of which are still winding their way through the global economy and the worst may not be felt for weeks, even if traffic were to reopen today.
—Alex Knapp, Forbes.com, 5 June 2026
If anything, the long-time executive knows that pending roster crunches often figure themselves out.
—Katie Woo, New York Times, 11 May 2026
The villain’s extensive exercise and grooming routines, including ice packs, a honey almond body scrub, and 1,000 crunches, have been stripped of their satirical intent and copied by young men.
—Fay Bound-Alberti, Time, 3 May 2026
The whistleblower claims that the museum improperly moved funds between various accounts in order to meet severe cash crunches.
—Brian Boucher, ARTnews.com, 29 Apr. 2026
In between glistening, shirtless crunches and sexy dalliances, Crown’s motives become clearer.
—Matt Donnelly, Variety, 16 Apr. 2026
Small Dining and Kitchen Solutions Kitchens and dining areas are where space crunches hit hardest.
—Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Sacbee.com, 14 Apr. 2026
And if investing in equipment isn’t an option, bodyweight exercises like squats, push-ups, lunges, crunches and planks engage multiple muscle groups and can be adapted for any fitness level.
—Daryl Austin, USA Today, 11 Apr. 2026
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
-
Cuba provides free, universal healthcare, but the system has been pushed to the brink as a result of resource shortages, fuel scarcity and power outages that can last more than 20 hours.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
15 June 2026
-
Ukrainian strikes on Russia’s critical infrastructure have also led to gasoline shortages in some areas and persistent airport delays.—
Lauren Kent,
CNN Money,
14 June 2026
Noun
-
Horrible things happen all the time, crises and catastrophes that defy language and imagination.—
Karen Valby,
Vanity Fair,
16 June 2026
-
So how does one put these two crises in alignment?—
Elizabeth Fazzare,
Architectural Digest,
16 June 2026
Verb
-
Every texture is an independent agent with its own membrane in the mix; percussion rubs and scrapes against your attention, while mutating synth patches burble in the periphery.—
H.D. Angel,
Pitchfork,
16 June 2026
-
The structured silhouette and clean lines feel refined without being flashy, while the durable leather withstands scrapes from branches and changing weather.—
Paris Wilson,
Travel + Leisure,
30 May 2026
Noun
-
The artist thought that paintings and drawings have a certain depth that photography on its own lacks.—
Kelsey Ables,
The Atlantic,
13 June 2026
-
What Hafley’s team lacks are proven, established names; productivity that can be relied on if healthy.—
Omar Kelly,
Miami Herald,
7 June 2026
Noun
-
Trade and cultural exchanges became more fluid, encouraging the emergence of a Mediterranean civilization at the crossroads of West and East.—
Roberto Prieto,
Variety,
17 June 2026
-
At the crossroads the right thing can look like the wrong thing and the wrong thing can look like the right thing.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 June 2026
Noun
-
The batches were distilled between January 2015 and April 2016, the whiskey was aged for a full decade in char #4 barrels with char #3 heads, and it was bottled at 102 proof without chill filtration.—
Jonah Flicker,
Robb Report,
13 June 2026
-
Trump and other heads of government from G7 nations are expected to arrive on Monday in Évian-les-Bains, France, for this year's summit.—
Aysha Bagchi,
USA Today,
13 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Crunches.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crunches. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
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