crumpling

verb

present participle of crumple
1
as in scrunching
to create (as by crushing) an irregular mass of creases in crumpled the piece of paper and angrily threw it in the wastebasket

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2
as in collapsing
to fall down or in as a result of physical pressure the box crumpled when I accidentally dropped a brick on it

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 crumpling But Mulderrig’s red Harley-Davidson Sportster slammed into the rear passenger side of Oates’ Cadillac, crumpling the back corner and twisting the wheel out of shape. — Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 18 Sep. 2026 Euphoric players cavorting in disbelief, long-suffering fans crumpling to their knees in tears, commentators’ voices cracking at the drama of it all. — Conor O'Neill, New York Times, 27 July 2026 Moses Moody scored 23 points before crumpling to the floor with an apparently serious left knee injury late in overtime as the Golden State Warriors beat Dallas 137-131 on Monday night, extending the Mavericks' home losing streak to 12 games, their longest in 32 years. — CBS News, 24 Mar. 2026 The Material steak knives arrived sharp, slicing through a piece of paper rather than crumpling its edge. — Emily Johnson, Bon Appetit Magazine, 18 Mar. 2026 Kamau fading, then lunging, then crumpling to the pavement at the line. — Kevin Sintumuang, Outside, 11 Mar. 2026 The question is whether the world can take that long of a shock without crumpling beneath the weight of rising inflation and staggering growth. — Tristan Bove, Fortune, 3 Mar. 2026 Singh’s truck blocked both lanes of the northbound Turnpike, leading the Chrysler Town & Country minivan the three friends were riding in to slam into the semi’s 18-wheeler trailer, crumpling underneath it. — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 18 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for crumpling
  1. scrunching
  2. collapsing
  3. folding
  4. tumbling
  5. wrinkling
Verb
  • Next, flip the head forward while scrunching upwards to help enhance curl definition.
    — Elise Tabin, InStyle, 6 Sep. 2026
  • Pick Ups Toe pick-ups involve picking up small items by scrunching your toes around them.
    — Jennifer Klump, Verywell Health, 17 July 2026
Definition of scrunching
Verb
  • His message delivery is no more successful than Todd’s, and now the entire conference is in danger of collapsing.
    — Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 17 Oct. 2026
  • The wounded man fled across the parking lot before collapsing near Seminary Drive, where responding officers attempted lifesaving measures.
    — Giles Hudson, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of collapsing
Verb
  • Teams then cyclize the peptide, folding a linear amino acid chain into a ring, and swap individual amino acids for more stable alternatives.
    — Samantha Agate, Kansas City Star, 16 Oct. 2026
  • For starters, the amino acid must be compatible with the backbone folding up into its planned structure.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of folding
Verb
  • Cybersecurity names including portfolio holdings CrowdStrike and Palo Alto Networks are also tumbling.
    — Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 14 Oct. 2026
  • After the rain moves out, a strong cold front will send temperatures tumbling for the weekend.
    — Matthew Villafane, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of tumbling
Verb
  • The symptom that alarmed me most in that moment was the progressive skin wrinkling in some NCBRS teens.
    — Deepa Fernandes, STAT, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Synthetic suede was used on the pink toe tip in 2011, but the shoe now features the real thing in order to avoid wrinkling and folding.
    — Ian Servantes, Footwear News, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of wrinkling

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crumples
crumpling
crumps
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Cite this Entry

“Crumpling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crumpling. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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