as in crevices
an irregular usually narrow break in a surface created by pressure
lava flows up through a fissure in the earth's crust
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Recent Examples of fissures
Crockett and her supporters are prying open fissures that will scar whichever candidate emerges.
—
Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 5 Feb. 2026
Recent protests amid corruption scandals, elite clan fissures, and governance failures suggest that nostalgia is again colliding with reality.
—Alejandro Reyes, Washington Post, 3 Feb. 2026
The peak of Yosemite’s granite wall is higher than the tallest building in the world and requires climbers to navigate a maze of fissures, crevices and cracks.
—Alex Wigglesworth, Los Angeles Times, 23 Jan. 2026
The fatal shooting sparked demonstrations nationwide and has deepened fissures between federal and state officials.
—Christopher Cann, USA Today, 20 Jan. 2026
As his family tries to settle into their new neighborhood, Jin’s plot creates fissures between him and his wife and daughters, as well as their white, liberal neighbor.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Jan. 2026
Some of the creatures seen at the Freya mounds are also found at hydrothermal vents, or fissures in the seafloor through which hot, chemical-laden water erupts, the researchers said, suggesting these ecosystems may be more intertwined than previously thought.
—Claire Cameron, Scientific American, 25 Dec. 2025
Spanning the state’s southeastern corner, the Oregon Outback is a stretch of high desert punctuated by volcanic fissures, jagged rocks, and the odd town dating back to pioneer times.
—Zoe Baillargeon, Travel + Leisure, 22 Dec. 2025
Cracked bitumen in turn leads to roadway fissures and potholes.
—New Atlas, 19 Dec. 2025
Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 5 Feb. 2026
Recent protests amid corruption scandals, elite clan fissures, and governance failures suggest that nostalgia is again colliding with reality.
—Alejandro Reyes, Washington Post, 3 Feb. 2026
The peak of Yosemite’s granite wall is higher than the tallest building in the world and requires climbers to navigate a maze of fissures, crevices and cracks.
—Alex Wigglesworth, Los Angeles Times, 23 Jan. 2026
The fatal shooting sparked demonstrations nationwide and has deepened fissures between federal and state officials.
—Christopher Cann, USA Today, 20 Jan. 2026
As his family tries to settle into their new neighborhood, Jin’s plot creates fissures between him and his wife and daughters, as well as their white, liberal neighbor.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Jan. 2026
Some of the creatures seen at the Freya mounds are also found at hydrothermal vents, or fissures in the seafloor through which hot, chemical-laden water erupts, the researchers said, suggesting these ecosystems may be more intertwined than previously thought.
—Claire Cameron, Scientific American, 25 Dec. 2025
Spanning the state’s southeastern corner, the Oregon Outback is a stretch of high desert punctuated by volcanic fissures, jagged rocks, and the odd town dating back to pioneer times.
—Zoe Baillargeon, Travel + Leisure, 22 Dec. 2025
Cracked bitumen in turn leads to roadway fissures and potholes.
—New Atlas, 19 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fissures
Noun
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The roughly 2-mile uphill climb to the top will raise your heart rate, and the terrain is challenging, with several rocky sections and deep crevices caused by years of erosion.—
Maura Fox,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 Feb. 2026
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Not only do our mops, brooms, and vacuums not naturally reach little crevices and detail work in trim, but mopping and sweeping and vacuuming tend to stir up dust where the wall meets the floor, and this causes debris and other allergens to build up quickly along the baseboards.—
Kate Van Pelt,
The Spruce,
4 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Nicole Fallert here, bringing you the news to know on Wednesday, from lawmakers' rifts over ICE reforms to an ongoing search for Savannah Guthrie's mother.—
Nicole Fallert,
USA Today,
4 Feb. 2026
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Despite the recent overheated rhetoric and both real and apparent rifts and shifts between the States and Europe, the routine fashion-weeks encampments of the makers and their clients from all walks of life exhibit a rock-solid stability.—
Guy Martin,
Forbes.com,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The water then builds up, finds its way under the shingles and any cracks, back into the attic and then through the ceiling.—
Mamie Bah,
CBS News,
3 Feb. 2026
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Over time, internal cracks will likely widen, particularly within the military, the impenetrable force that has underpinned the regime and blocked the opposition.—
Juan Pablo Spinetto,
Twin Cities,
1 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fissures.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fissures. Accessed 11 Feb. 2026.
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