collapse

[Col*lapseĀ·]

To collapse means to fall over, cave in, or totally crumple. After finding out that the stock market has collapsed and your investments along with it, you'd probably collapse to the ground and sob uncontrollably.

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To fall together suddenly, as the sides of a hollow vessel; to close by falling or shrinking together; to have the sides or parts of (a thing) fall in together, or be crushed in together; as, a flue in the boiler of a steam engine sometimes collapses.

Noun
the act of throwing yourself down; "he landed on the bed with a great flop"

Noun
a mishap caused by something suddenly falling down or caving in

Noun
a sudden large decline of business or the prices of stocks (especially one that causes additional failures)

Noun
an abrupt failure of function or health

Verb
collapse due to fatigue, an illness, or a sudden attack

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Verb
lose significance, effectiveness, or value; "The school system is collapsing"; "The stock market collapsed"

Verb
suffer a nervous breakdown

Verb
break down, literally or metaphorically; "The wall collapsed"; "The business collapsed"; "The dam broke"; "The roof collapsed"; "The wall gave in"; "The roof finally gave under the weight of the ice"

Verb
cause to burst; "The ice broke the pipe"

Verb
fall apart; "the building crimbled after the explosion"; "Negociations broke down"

Verb
fold or close up; "fold up your umbrella"; "collapse the music stand"


v. i.
To fall together suddenly, as the sides of a hollow vessel; to close by falling or shrinking together; to have the sides or parts of (a thing) fall in together, or be crushed in together; as, a flue in the boiler of a steam engine sometimes collapses.

v. i.
To fail suddenly and completely, like something hollow when subject to too much pressure; to undergo a collapse; as, Maximilian's government collapsed soon after the French army left Mexico; many financial projects collapse after attaining some success and importance.

n.
A falling together suddenly, as of the sides of a hollow vessel.

n.
A sudden and complete failure; an utter failure of any kind; a breakdown.

n.
Extreme depression or sudden failing of all the vital powers, as the result of disease, injury, or nervous disturbance.


Collapse

Col*lapse" , v. i. [imp. & p. p. Collapsed ; p. pr. & vb. n. Collapsing] [L. collapsus, p. p. of collabi to collapse; col- + labi to fall, slide. See Lapse.] 1. To fall together suddenly, as the sides of a hollow vessel; to close by falling or shrinking together; to have the sides or parts of (a thing) fall in together, or be crushed in together; as, a flue in the boiler of a steam engine sometimes collapses.
A balloon collapses when the gas escapes from it.
2. To fail suddenly and completely, like something hollow when subject to too much pressure; to undergo a collapse; as, Maximilian's government collapsed soon after the French army left Mexico; many financial projects collapse after attaining some success and importance.

Collapse

Col*lapse" , n. 1. A falling together suddenly, as of the sides of a hollow vessel. 2. A sudden and complete failure; an utter failure of any kind; a breakdown. [Colloq.] 3. (Med.) Extreme depression or sudden failing o all the vital powers, as the result of disease, injury, or nervous disturbance.

To fall together suddenly, as the sides of a hollow vessel; to close by falling or shrinking together; to have the sides or parts of (a thing) fall in together, or be crushed in together; as, a flue in the boiler of a steam engine sometimes collapses.

A falling together suddenly, as of the sides of a hollow vessel.

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Usage Examples

When a place gets crowded enough to require ID's, social collapse is not far away. It is time to go elsewhere. The best thing about space travel is that it made it possible to go elsewhere.

Ever since the collapse of cap and trade legislation and the realization that President Obama is unlikely to ever utter the words 'climate change' in public again, much less use the bully pulpit to prepare the nation for the catastrophic risks of inaction, the movement has been in a funk.

It has always amazed me how tax cuts don't work until they take effect. Mr. Obama's experience with deferred tax rate increases will be the reverse. The economy will collapse in 2011.

The banking collapse was caused, more than anything, by bad government policy and the total failure of bad regulation, rather than by greed.

America cannot continue to lead the family of nations around the world if we suffer the collapse of the family here at home.

The left dismisses talk about the collapse of family life and talks instead about the emergence of the growing new diversity of family types.

The last three decades have seen the collapse of the family wage system.

Misspelled Form

collapse, xcollapse, dcollapse, fcollapse, vcollapse, collapse, xollapse, dollapse, follapse, vollapse, ollapse, cxollapse, cdollapse, cfollapse, cvollapse, c ollapse, ciollapse, c9ollapse, c0ollapse, cpollapse, clollapse, cillapse, c9llapse, c0llapse, cpllapse, clllapse, coillapse, co9llapse, co0llapse, copllapse, colllapse, cokllapse, coollapse, copllapse, co:llapse, coklapse, coolapse, coplapse, co:lapse, colklapse, cololapse, colplapse, col:lapse, colklapse, cololapse, colplapse, col:lapse, colkapse, coloapse, colpapse, col:apse, collkapse, colloapse, collpapse, coll:apse, collqapse, collwapse, collsapse, collzapse, collqpse, collwpse, collspse, collzpse, collaqpse, collawpse, collaspse, collazpse, collaopse, colla0pse, collalpse, collaose, colla0se, collalse, collapose, collap0se, collaplse, collapase, collapwse, collapese, collapdse, collapxse, collapzse, collapae, collapwe, collapee, collapde, collapxe, collapze, collapsae, collapswe, collapsee, collapsde, collapsxe, collapsze, collapswe, collaps3e, collaps4e, collapsre, collapsse, collapsde, collapsw, collaps3, collaps4, collapsr, collapss, collapsd, collapsew, collapse3, collapse4, collapser, collapses, collapsed.

Other Usage Examples

Billy is a funny, cheeky, lovely boy and I love being with him. Parenthood is terrifying though. I can barely walk past a building without panicking that it's going to collapse on his head.

The more the history of the World War and what led up to it is studied, the more clearly those tragic years become revealed as a vast collapse of civilization.

Poetry is the most subtle of the literary arts, and students grow more ingenious by the year at avoiding it. If they can nip around Milton, duck under Blake and collapse gratefully into the arms of Jane Austen, a lot of them will.

Censorship is saying: 'I'm the one who says the last sentence. Whatever you say, the conclusion is mine.' But the internet is like a tree that is growing. The people will always have the last word - even if someone has a very weak, quiet voice. Such power will collapse because of a whisper.

Our society is dependent on some precarious mechanisms, and they are very dicey. They can easily collapse.

One of the most destructive things that's happening in modern society is that we are losing our sense of the bonds that bind people together - which can lead to nightmares of social collapse.

The Berlin Wall wasn't the only barrier to fall after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War. Traditional barriers to the flow of money, trade, people and ideas also fell.

If we have built on the fragile cornerstones of human wisdom, pride, and conditional love, things may look good for a while, but a weak foundation causes collapse when storms hit.

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