crunch time

noun

Definition of crunch timenext
as in crisis
a time or state of affairs requiring prompt or decisive action with only three minutes left in the game, it was definitely crunch time

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 crunch time But Golden State didn't get enough defensive stops in crunch time. — ABC News, 20 Aug. 2026 Russ could brick a wild bank shot, cough up the ball in crunch time and make fans want to launch their remotes through the TV. — Alejandro Avila Outkick, FOXNews.com, 12 Aug. 2026 With the games now having the kind of stakes that Thursday’s contest lacked, that leaky defense – especially in crunch time toward the end of matches – is the possible Achilles heel for this team. — Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 26 June 2026 Brunson remains the go-to scorer and respected leader whose unflappability in crunch time, even during his down games, is the ultimate separator. — Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 14 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for crunch time
Recent Examples of Synonyms for crunch time
  1. crisis
  2. head
  3. breaking point
  4. boiling point
  5. flash point
Noun
  • Advertisement The protests are also occurring amid a wider crisis of political confidence in the country.
    — Nicholas Bequelin, Time, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The agency, created in 1974 in the wake of the Arab oil embargo, is tasked with maintaining energy security by deploying oil stockpiles in response to crises like the wars in the Middle East and Eastern Europe.
    — Spencer Kimball, CNBC, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of crisis
Noun
  • Now, in yet another blow to national self-esteem, the ex-head of Germany’s foreign intelligence agency, the BND, has been arrested on charges of exploiting state secrets.
    — The Week UK, TheWeek, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Instead of exchanging the entire print head, the K3 swaps a smaller assembly containing the nozzle, hotend and filament path.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of head
Noun
  • This time around, traders often cite the booming (and opaque) private credit market and AI datacenter plans funded too much by debt — some of it off balance sheet — as likely breaking points.
    — Sean Conlon, CNBC, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Keep in mind, there is a breaking point.
    — Shep Hyken, Forbes.com, 26 June 2026
Definition of breaking point
Noun
  • Growing tensions between tourists and locals hit a boiling point in Spain recently as hundreds of thousands of residents flooded the streets of Barcelona, Madrid and other Spanish cities to protest skyrocketing housing costs.
    — Jessica Mekles, FOXNews.com, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Charles’ resentment reached a boiling point in 1884, when his and Adam’s father, Cyrus Trask (Tracy Letts), enlisted Adam in the Army despite Charles being the far superior soldier.
    — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of boiling point
Noun
  • Voting by mail has been a flash point since the 2020 presidential election when Philadelphia and Pennsylvania sat at the center of controversy.
    — Heather LaMarre, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2026
  • James’s appointment has become the latest flash point in the swelling controversy over the 2024 incident and its handling by officials.
    — Lexi Lonas Cochran, The Hill, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of flash point

Browse Nearby Words

crunch (on)
crunch time
crunch times
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Crunch time.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crunch%20time. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of compunction

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All