Definition of CRUNCH

crunch

Plural: crunches

Noun

  • the sound of something crunching
    • "he heard the crunch of footsteps on the gravel path"
  • a critical situation that arises because of a shortage (as a shortage of time or money or resources)
    • "an end-of-the year crunch"
    • "a financial crunch"
  • the act of crushing
  • A noisy crackling sound; the sound usually associated with crunching.
  • A critical moment or event.
  • A problem that leads to a crisis.
  • A form of abdominal exercise, based on a sit-up but in which the lower back remains in contact with the floor.
  • The overtime work required to catch up and finish a project, usually in the final weeks of development before release.
  • A dessert consisting of a crunchy topping with fruit underneath.
  • The symbol #.
  • A small piece created by crushing; a piece of material with a friable or crunchy texture.
  • A shortage.

Verb

Verb Forms: crunched, crunching, crunches

  • To chew or grind audibly; to make a loud, crisp sound.
  • make a crushing noise
    • "his shoes were crunching on the gravel"
  • press or grind with a crushing noise
  • chew noisily
    • "The children crunched the celery sticks"
  • reduce to small pieces or particles by pounding or abrading
  • To crush something, especially food, with a noisy crackling sound.
  • To be crushed with a noisy crackling sound.
  • To calculate or otherwise process (e.g. to crunch numbers: to perform mathematical calculations). Presumably from the sound made by mechanical calculators.
  • To grind or press with violence and noise.
  • To emit a grinding or crunching noise.
  • To cause the gears to emit a crunching sound by releasing the clutch before the gears are properly synchronised.
  • To compress (data) using a particular algorithm, so that it can be restored by decrunching.
  • To make employees work overtime in order to meet a deadline in the development of a project.

Examples

  • Beetles crunched beneath the men's heavy boots as they worked.
  • He would CRUNCH his ice cubes nervously during the final tense turns of Words With Friends.
  • That metadata makes it much easier for the search engine to crunch the data for queries.
  • When I came home, Susan was watching TV with her feet up on the couch, crunching a piece of celery.

Origin / Etymology

From earlier craunch, cranch, of imitative origin.

Synonyms

bray, comminute, compaction, crackle, cranch, craunch, crush, grind, mash, munch, scranch, scraunch, crisp, crumble, hashtag, number sign, pound sign

Scrabble Score: 13

crunch: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
crunch: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
crunch: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 16

crunch: valid Words With Friends Word