as in scraping
to press or strike against or together so as to make a scraping sound
I could hear the bicycle gears crunch as I shifted the derailleur
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 crunching
Griffin sat alongside mid-level employees, crunching numbers.
—
Gary Sernovitz, New Yorker, 15 June 2026
But analysts at Deutsche Bank drew a much more bullish conclusion while crunching the numbers in a different way.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 13 June 2026
But unlike the calone-heavy scents of the past, 2026’s take on aquatics is less about swimming pools and more about seashells and sand crunching underfoot.
—Kara Jillian Brown, InStyle, 3 June 2026
In the end, after some number-crunching, neither option panned out.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 2 June 2026
Aussies defy their bad fortune A carbon-crunching, three-way crash on the start line of the final fleet race will dominate people’s memories of a mad Sunday, making Australia’s victory of resilience somewhat of a footnote at the end of a wacky weekend.
—Andrew Rice, New York Times, 1 June 2026
Produced by Zakk Cervini (Bring Me the Horizon, Yungblud/Aerosmith) the song blends crunching riffs with Tankian’s unmistakably operatic panic-siren delivery.
—Spin Staff, SPIN, 29 May 2026
As the players compete, their advisors, CPAs, and other professionals are crunching the numbers.
—Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes.com, 15 May 2026
Best not to start crunching those numbers.
—Amber Harding Outkick, FOXNews.com, 15 May 2026
Gary Sernovitz, New Yorker, 15 June 2026
But analysts at Deutsche Bank drew a much more bullish conclusion while crunching the numbers in a different way.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 13 June 2026
But unlike the calone-heavy scents of the past, 2026’s take on aquatics is less about swimming pools and more about seashells and sand crunching underfoot.
—Kara Jillian Brown, InStyle, 3 June 2026
In the end, after some number-crunching, neither option panned out.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 2 June 2026
Aussies defy their bad fortune A carbon-crunching, three-way crash on the start line of the final fleet race will dominate people’s memories of a mad Sunday, making Australia’s victory of resilience somewhat of a footnote at the end of a wacky weekend.
—Andrew Rice, New York Times, 1 June 2026
Produced by Zakk Cervini (Bring Me the Horizon, Yungblud/Aerosmith) the song blends crunching riffs with Tankian’s unmistakably operatic panic-siren delivery.
—Spin Staff, SPIN, 29 May 2026
As the players compete, their advisors, CPAs, and other professionals are crunching the numbers.
—Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes.com, 15 May 2026
Best not to start crunching those numbers.
—Amber Harding Outkick, FOXNews.com, 15 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for crunching
Verb
-
Sure enough, the sticky surface of the connector segment back to Arizona Trail passage 3 brought up haunting memories of being mired in muck the previous month near the Mogollon Rim, and forced me to employ a new mud-scraping stick within an hour of getting back on trail.—
Joan Meiners,
AZCentral.com,
8 Dec. 2025
-
There are 618 McDonald's restaurants in Ohio, according to the web scraping tool ScrapeHero.—
Chad Murphy,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
8 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
Affected animals transfer rabies by biting, licking or scratching other animals and humans.—
Laura Horne,
Charlotte Observer,
11 June 2026
-
Zoo veterinarians and staff will closely monitor the cubs and observe their behaviors like making small climbs, scratching through substrate and calling to one another when startled.—
Patrick Connolly,
The Orlando Sentinel,
8 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Crunching.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crunching. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
