collapse
Other forms: collapsed; collapsing; collapses
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.
From the Latin collapsus, meaning “fall together," comes our English collapse, a word that functions as both noun and verb. Empires collapse after revolutions, and your dog will eventually collapse from exhaustion if he keeps chasing his tail in circles. But if a company falls apart after the boss retires, or you have a total breakdown cramming for exams, that's a kind of collapse, too.
Definitions of collapse
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break down, literally or metaphorically“The wall collapsed”“The business collapsed”“The roof collapsed”
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go off, implode
burst inward
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buckle, crumple
fold or collapse
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flop
fall loosely
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break
curl over and fall apart in surf or foam, of waves
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sink, slide down, slump
fall or sink heavily
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type of:
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change
undergo a change; become different in essence; losing one's or its original nature
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fall apart
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synonyms:
break down, crumble, crumple, tumble
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type of:
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change integrity
change in physical make-up
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change integrity
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fold or close up“collapse the music stand”
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types:
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deflate
collapse by releasing contained air or gas
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concertina
collapse like a concertina
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deflate
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cause to burst
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a natural event caused by something suddenly falling down or caving in“the roof is in danger of collapse”“the collapse of the old star under its own gravity”
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cave in, subsidence
the sudden collapse of something into a hollow beneath it
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debacle, fiasco
a sudden and violent collapse
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implosion
a sudden inward collapse
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gravitational collapse
the implosion of a star resulting from its own gravity; the result is a smaller and denser celestial object
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type of:
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happening, natural event, occurrence, occurrent
an event that happens
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collapse due to fatigue, an illness, or a sudden attack
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synonyms:
break down
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suffer a nervous breakdown
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an abrupt failure of function or complete physical exhaustion
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synonyms:
prostration
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breakdown, crack-up
a mental or physical breakdown
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shock
(pathology) bodily collapse or near collapse caused by inadequate oxygen delivery to the cells; characterized by reduced cardiac output and rapid heartbeat and circulatory insufficiency and pallor
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heat hyperpyrexia, heatstroke
collapse caused by exposure to excessive heat
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algidity
prostration characterized by cold and clammy skin and low blood pressure
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nervous breakdown
a severe or incapacitating emotional disorder
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cardiogenic shock
shock caused by cardiac arrest
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hypovolemic shock
shock caused by severe blood or fluid loss
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obstructive shock
shock caused by obstruction of blood flow
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distributive shock
shock caused by poor distribution of the blood flow
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insulin reaction, insulin shock
hypoglycemia produced by excessive insulin in the system causing coma
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heat exhaustion, heat prostration
a condition marked by dizziness and nausea and weakness caused by depletion of body fluids and electrolytes
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insolation, siriasis, sunstroke, thermic fever
sudden prostration due to exposure to the sun or excessive heat
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type of:
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illness, malady, sickness, unwellness
impairment of normal physiological function affecting part or all of an organism
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lose significance, effectiveness, or value
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a sudden large decline of business or the prices of stocks (especially one that causes additional failures)
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synonyms:
crash
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type of:
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happening, natural event, occurrence, occurrent
an event that happens
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happening, natural event, occurrence, occurrent
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the act of throwing yourself down
Pronunciation
US
/kəˈlæps/
UK
/kəˈlæps/
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