as in cracked
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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Recent Examples of melted down
His dad needed to pop in to check something, and what caught Will’s eye was a large drum of polyethylene pellets, the raw bits that get melted down and stretched into plastic wrap and plastic bags.
—
Eric Boodman, Vulture, 25 Mar. 2026
Though skeletal remains are missing, some objects had been burned or melted down.
—Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 23 Mar. 2026
Maybe it can be melted down to create something new and uplifting.
—Arts Editor, Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2026
After an ugly pitching performance Saturday night in which the Texas bullpen melted down and allowed six runs in the ninth inning, the Longhorns steadied themselves Sunday.
—David Eckert, Austin American Statesman, 8 Mar. 2026
When his kids melted down and started shrieking over the usual tantrum-inducing nonsense that sometimes sets off 4-year-olds, Buttigieg looked around nervously, gathered his family, and left the shop fast.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 3 Mar. 2026
Hello from Milan and Cortina, where the USA women’s hockey team will face a familiar foe in the gold-medal game, two Americans were on the podium in women’s monobob and a Norwegian skier melted down after losing out on a medal.
—The Sports Desk, NBC news, 16 Feb. 2026
Inside the Arts District campus workspace, plastic donations are sorted, shredded and melted down using specialized equipment before being molded into new objects or artwork.
—Spencer Wilson, CBS News, 11 Feb. 2026
Stolen Louvre loot worth $102 million may be melted down.
—Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 6 Feb. 2026
Eric Boodman, Vulture, 25 Mar. 2026
Though skeletal remains are missing, some objects had been burned or melted down.
—Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 23 Mar. 2026
Maybe it can be melted down to create something new and uplifting.
—Arts Editor, Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2026
After an ugly pitching performance Saturday night in which the Texas bullpen melted down and allowed six runs in the ninth inning, the Longhorns steadied themselves Sunday.
—David Eckert, Austin American Statesman, 8 Mar. 2026
When his kids melted down and started shrieking over the usual tantrum-inducing nonsense that sometimes sets off 4-year-olds, Buttigieg looked around nervously, gathered his family, and left the shop fast.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 3 Mar. 2026
Hello from Milan and Cortina, where the USA women’s hockey team will face a familiar foe in the gold-medal game, two Americans were on the podium in women’s monobob and a Norwegian skier melted down after losing out on a medal.
—The Sports Desk, NBC news, 16 Feb. 2026
Inside the Arts District campus workspace, plastic donations are sorted, shredded and melted down using specialized equipment before being molded into new objects or artwork.
—Spencer Wilson, CBS News, 11 Feb. 2026
Stolen Louvre loot worth $102 million may be melted down.
—Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 6 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for melted down
Verb
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Running from 2005 through 2013 for a total of nine seasons, the sitcom just cracked 200 episodes, following the hapless and offbeat employees at a fictional paper company.—
Natalie Oganesyan,
Deadline,
29 Mar. 2026
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The series traded on the glamorous sheen of their mythos but never cracked below it.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Such an outcome could slash oil prices, flooding the market with supply currently choked by military threats in the Strait of Hormuz.—
Eleanor Pringle,
Fortune,
25 Mar. 2026
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As ProPublica detailed earlier this year, Bazan was tackled and choked by immigration agents who were chasing his undocumented father in Houston.—
Nicole Foy,
ProPublica,
24 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Even more impressively, another compound broke down fully at just 30°C, showing the method can work under milder conditions.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
29 Mar. 2026
-
When one chopper broke down, another would be dismantled for parts to fix it.—
Simon Shuster,
The Atlantic,
27 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Melted down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/melted%20down. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.
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