What does "crush" mean?
A violent collision or compression; a crash; destruction; ruin.
Crush
/kɹʌʃ/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A violent collision or compression; a crash; destruction; ruin.
- Grammar: crush is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: infatuation, press, abase, abash.
- Useful contrasts: boost, coldness, decompress.
- Usage evidence: I wish people would stop saying things in ways that crush young dreams.
How to use "crush"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "crush" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "crush" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "crush" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "crush" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "crush" is acting as noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "infatuation" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "crush", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A violent collision or compression; a crash; destruction; ruin. countable, uncountable
"The more highly the injured part is endowed with sensory nerves the more marked is the shock; a crush of the hand, for example, is attended with a more intense degree of shock than a correspondingly severe crush of the foot"
- 2 the act of crushing wordnet
- 3 Violent pressure, as of a moving crowd. countable, uncountable
- 4 temporary love of an adolescent wordnet
- 5 A violent crowding. countable, uncountable
Show 13 more definitions
- 6 a dense crowd of people wordnet
- 7 A crowd that produces uncomfortable pressure. countable, uncountable
"a crush at a reception"
- 8 leather that has had its grain pattern accentuated wordnet
- 9 A group or gang. countable, slang, uncountable
"Then there was another set who called themselves the "Ragged Thirteen"; and the account says "they looked it." And, like most diggers, this "crush," to quote my authority, could handle the cards a bit."
- 10 A crowd control barrier. countable, uncountable
- 11 A drink made by squeezing the juice out of fruit. countable, uncountable
""Look," said Crabbe, warm orange crush in his hand."
- 12 An infatuation with somebody one is not dating. countable, informal, uncountable
"I've had a huge crush on her since we met many years ago."
- 13 An infatuation with somebody one is not dating.; The human object of such infatuation or affection. broadly, countable, informal, uncountable
"He took his crush out for dinner."
- 14 A standing stock or cage with movable sides used to restrain livestock for safe handling. countable, uncountable
- 15 A party or festive function. countable, dated, uncountable
"Two months ago I went to a crush at Lady Brandon's."
- 16 The process of crushing cane to remove the raw sugar, or the season when this process takes place. Australia, countable, uncountable
- 17 The situation where certain colors are so similar as to be hard to distinguish, either as a deliberate effect or as a limitation of a display. uncountable
"black crush; white crush"
- 18 A paraphilia involving arousal from seeing things destroyed by crushing. uncountable
"Just as they say that marijuana leads to harder drugs, Gallegly is claiming that crush is a "gateway fetish"—a term I've never heard before. He claims that if someone starts with bugs they'll end up escalating to human babies in no time."
Verb
- 1 To press between two hard objects; to squeeze so as to alter the natural shape or integrity, or to force together into a mass.
"to crush grapes"
- 2 break into small pieces wordnet
- 3 To reduce to fine particles by pounding or grinding.
"to crush quartz"
- 4 become injured, broken, or distorted by pressure wordnet
- 5 To overwhelm by pressure or weight. figuratively
"After the corruption scandal, the opposition crushed the ruling party in the elections"
Show 13 more definitions
- 6 come out better in a competition, race, or conflict wordnet
- 7 To do impressively well at (sports events; performances; interviews; etc.). colloquial, figuratively
"They had a gig recently at Madison Square—totally crushed it!"
- 8 make ineffective wordnet
- 9 To oppress or grievously burden.
- 10 crush or bruise wordnet
- 11 To overcome completely; to subdue totally.
"The sultan's black guard crushed every resistance bloodily."
- 12 to compress with violence, out of natural shape or condition wordnet
- 13 To be or become broken down or in, or pressed into a smaller volume or area, by external weight or force. intransitive
"an eggshell crushes easily"
- 14 humiliate or depress completely wordnet
- 15 To feel infatuation or unrequited love. intransitive, transitive
"She's crushing on him."
- 16 come down on or keep down by unjust use of one's authority wordnet
- 17 To give a compressed or foreshortened appearance to.
"He frames his subject in distant close-ups (we feel the distance, due mostly to the crushed perspective brought about by the telephoto lens)."
- 18 To make certain colors so similar as to be hard to distinguish, either as a deliberate effect or as a limitation of a display. transitive
"My old TV set crushes the blacks when the brightness is lowered."
Antonyms
Example
"I wish people would stop saying things in ways that crush young dreams."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "crush"?
Common synonyms include: infatuation, press, abase, abash, abolish, abrade.
How do you use "crush" in a sentence?
I wish people would stop saying things in ways that crush young dreams.
How do you pronounce "crush"?
Pronounced /kɹʌʃ/.
Etymology
From Middle English cruschen (“to crush, smash, squeeze, squash”), from Old French croissir (“to crush”), from Late Latin *crusciō (“to crush”), from Frankish *krustijan (“to crush, squeeze, squash”), from Proto-Germanic *kreustaną (“to crush, grind, strike, smash”). Cognate with Middle Low German tôkrosten (“to crush, shatter”), Swedish krysta (“to squeeze”), Danish kryste (“to squash”), Icelandic kreista (“to squeeze, squash”), Faroese kroysta (“to squeeze”), Gothic 𐌺𐍂𐌹𐌿𐍃𐍄𐌰𐌽 (kriustan, “to gnash”). Akin also to Middle Dutch crosen (“to bruise, crush”), Middle Low German krossen, krö̂sen, tôkrö̂sen (“to break, shatter”), Old Swedish krusa (“to crush”).