melt down 1 of 2

verb

Definition of melt downnext
as in to crack
to yield to mental or emotional stress rather than melt down, the team strengthened their resolve and ended up winning the game

Synonyms & Similar Words

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meltdown

2 of 2

noun

1
as in tailspin

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Dissimilar Words
2
as in collapse

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Dissimilar Words

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 melt down
Verb
This one appears quick opaque and viscous, but actually does a nice job at melting down onto the skin and absorbing quickly. — Lucy Partington, Glamour, 7 Oct. 2026 Here’s why How junk silver is valued The price of junk silver is based on its melt value — the value of the silver content if the coin were melted down. — Nick Perry, USA Today, 22 Sep. 2026
Noun
Charlie’s testosterone-cream, crack, and vodka meltdown was ratings gold, and everyone eagerly cashed in on it. — Chuck Lorre, Vanity Fair, 7 Oct. 2026 An explosion or a meltdown on the moon’s surface would risk turning entire regions into no-go zones. — Selam Gebrekidan, New York Times, 4 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for melt down
Recent Examples of Synonyms for melt down
  1. crack
  2. tailspin
  3. collapse
  4. choke
  5. freak-out
  6. disaster
  7. break down
  8. nervous breakdown
Verb
  • But the real reason this outing cracks the list isn’t simply the six touchdowns.
    — Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Kuemper cracked for the first time with just under six minutes left in the second period when rookie Victor Eklund’s shot squeezed through on a power play.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of crack
Noun
  • The 2018 tailspin had followed a massive momentum crescendo and reversal several months earlier, which gave way to an erratic tape that couldn't absorb what seemed at the time relatively unthreatening Federal Reserve tightening actions.
    — Michael Santoli, CNBC, 20 Oct. 2026
  • And Criss was concerned that unchecked growth of the program, coupled with a spree of tax cuts, could put the state budget into a tailspin.
    — Henry Culvyhouse, ProPublica, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of tailspin
Noun
  • Mohamud also warned of a possible secondary collapse, as the collapsed building was leaning on its neighbor.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 24 Oct. 2026
  • Spirit Airlines' ghost planes The problems with young retirements predate Spirit's collapse.
    — Leslie Josephs, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of collapse
Verb
  • Bill Snyder’s second-greatest football achievement as Kansas State’s legendary head coach, after magically transforming the nation’s most moribund program into a national contender, was to choke the life from his school’s biggest rivalry game.
    — Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Among those arrested were individuals accused of choking their partners and assaulting their children, the sheriff’s office said.
    — Tanya Babbar, Houston Chronicle, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of choke
Noun
  • The Derby’s question is quite often decided by whichever colt or filly has the racing focus and the strength not to succumb to his or her ambient freak-out.
    — Guy Martin, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
  • Even so, the nation’s collective freak-out should serve as a wake-up call to both the food industry and regulators.
    — Nicholas Florko, The Atlantic, 17 July 2026
Definition of freak-out
Noun
  • Residents, meanwhile, can give firefighters the best shot at stopping a potential disaster by clearing flammable vegetation in their yards and fire-hardening their homes.
    — Noah Haggerty, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The goal, ultimately, is not to eat our way out of an ecological disaster.
    — Victoria Malloy, Time, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of disaster
Verb
  • Kendall teaches children and teenagers to break down anxiety-provoking situations, such as finding friends to sit with in the cafeteria or asking someone for a date, into smaller steps and planning what to do if something goes wrong.
    — Maia Szalavitz, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
  • For the first time in Oppenheim’s career, his relationship with a subject broke down seemingly beyond repair.
    — Alex Barasch, Vulture, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of break down
Noun
  • As rumors grew about why Talarico was not seen in public during one of the tightest campaigns in the country, Paxton suggested that the Democratic hopeful had suffered a nervous breakdown of some kind.
    — Emily Hallas, The Washington Examiner, 14 Oct. 2026
  • This had resulted in several nervous breakdowns during my first few weeks back home.
    — Joe Manganiello, HollywoodReporter, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of nervous breakdown

Browse Nearby Words

melt (away)
melt down
meltdown
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Cite this Entry

“Melt down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/melt%20down. Accessed 26 Oct. 2026.

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