Adjacent Words

Crush definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

CRUSH, v.t.
1. To press and bruise between two hard bodies; to squeeze, so as to force a thing out of its natural shape; to bruise by pressure.
The ass--crushed Balaams foot against the wall. Numbers 22.
To crush grapes or apples, is to squeeze them till bruised and broken, so that the juice escapes. Hence, to crush out, is to force out by pressure.
2. To press with violence; to force together into a mass.
3. To overwhelm by pressure; to beat or force down, by an incumbent weight, with breaking or bruising; as, the man was crushed by the fall of a tree.
To crush the pillars which the pile sustain.
Who are crushed before the moth. Job 4.
4. To overwhelm by power; to subdue; to conquer beyond resistance; as, to crush ones enemies; to crush a rebellion.
5. To oppress grievously.
Thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed always. Deutoronomy 28.
6. To bruise and break into fine particles by beating or grinding; to comminute.
CRUSH, v.i. To be pressed into a smaller compass by external weight or force.
CRUSH, n. A violent collision, or rushing together, which breaks or bruises the bodies; or a fall that breaks or bruises into a confused mass; as the crush of a large tree, or of a building.
The wrecks of matter, and the crush of worlds.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: leather that has had its grain pattern accentuated [syn: crushed leather, crush]
2: a dense crowd of people [syn: crush, jam, press]
3: temporary love of an adolescent [syn: puppy love, calf love, crush, infatuation]
4: the act of crushing [syn: crush, crunch, compaction] v
1: come down on or keep down by unjust use of one's authority; "The government oppresses political activists" [syn: oppress, suppress, crush]
2: to compress with violence, out of natural shape or condition; "crush an aluminum can"; "squeeze a lemon" [syn: squash, crush, squelch, mash, squeeze]
3: come out better in a competition, race, or conflict; "Agassi beat Becker in the tennis championship"; "We beat the competition"; "Harvard defeated Yale in the last football game" [syn: beat, beat out, crush, shell, trounce, vanquish]
4: break into small pieces; "The car crushed the toy"
5: humiliate or depress completely; "She was crushed by his refusal of her invitation"; "The death of her son smashed her" [syn: crush, smash, demolish]
6: crush or bruise; "jam a toe" [syn: jam, crush]
7: make ineffective; "Martin Luther King tried to break down racial discrimination" [syn: break down, crush]
8: become injured, broken, or distorted by pressure; "The plastic bottle crushed against the wall"

Merriam Webster's

I. verb Etymology: Middle English crusshen, from Anglo-French croissir, croistre, of Germanic origin; akin to Middle Low German krossen to crush Date: 15th century transitive verb 1. a. to squeeze or force by pressure so as to alter or destroy structure <crush grapes> b. to squeeze together into a mass 2. hug, embrace 3. to reduce to particles by pounding or grinding <crush rock> 4. a. to suppress or overwhelm as if by pressure or weight b. to oppress or burden grievously <crushed by debt> c. to subdue completely <the rebellion was crushed> 5. crowd, push <were crushed into the elevator> 6. archaic drink intransitive verb 1. obsolete crash 2. to become crushed 3. to advance with or as if with crushing • crushable adjective • crusher noun • crushingly adverb II. noun Date: 1599 1. an act of crushing 2. the quantity of material crushed 3. a. a crowding together (as of people) b. crowd, mob; especially a crowd of people pressing against one another 4. an intense and usually passing infatuation <have a crush on someone>; also the object of infatuation Synonyms: see crowd • crushproof adjective

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. & n. --v.tr. 1 compress with force or violence, so as to break, bruise, etc. 2 reduce to powder by pressure. 3 crease or crumple by rough handling. 4 defeat or subdue completely (crushed by my reply). --n. 1 an act of crushing. 2 a crowded mass of people. 3 a drink made from the juice of crushed fruit. 4 colloq. a (usu. foll. by on) a (usu. passing) infatuation. b the object of an infatuation (who's the latest crush?). Phrases and idioms: crush bar a place in a theatre for audiences to buy drinks in the intervals. crush barrier a barrier, esp. a temporary one, for restraining a crowd. Derivatives: crushable adj. crusher n. crushingly adv. Etymology: ME f. AF crussir, corussier, OF croissir, cruissir, gnash (teeth), crack, f. Rmc

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Crush Crush (kr?sh), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Crushed (kr?sht); p. pr. & vb. n. Crushing.] [OE. cruschen, crousshen, Of. cruisir, croissir, fr. LL. cruscire, prob. of Ger. origin, from a derivative of the word seen in Goth. kruistan to gnash; akin to Sw. krysta to squeeze, Dan. kryste, Icel. kreysta.] 1. To press or bruise between two hard bodies; to squeeze, so as to destroy the natural shape or integrity of the parts, or to force together into a mass; as, to crush grapes. Ye shall not offer unto the Lord that which is bruised, or crushed, or broken, or cut. --Lev. xxii. 24. The ass . . . thrust herself unto the wall, and crushed Balaam's foot against the wall. --Num. xxii. 25. 2. To reduce to fine particles by pounding or grinding; to comminute; as, to crush quartz. 3. To overwhelm by pressure or weight; to beat or force down, as by an incumbent weight. To crush the pillars which the pile sustain. --Dryden. Truth, crushed to earth, shall rise again. --Bryant. 4. To oppress or burden grievously. Thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed alway. --Deut. xxviii. 33. 5. To overcome completely; to subdue totally. Speedily overtaking and crushing the rebels. --Sir. W. Scott. To crush a cup, to drink. [Obs.] To crush out. (a) To force out or separate by pressure, as juice from grapes. (b) To overcome or destroy completely; to suppress.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Crush Crush (kr?sh), v. i. To be or become broken down or in, or pressed into a smaller compass, by external weight or force; as, an eggshell crushes easily.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Crush Crush, n. 1. A violent collision or compression; a crash; destruction; ruin. The wreck of matter, and the crush of worlds. --Addison. 2. Violent pressure, as of a crowd; a crowd which produced uncomfortable pressure; as, a crush at a peception. Crush hat, a hat which collapses, and can be carried under the arm, and when expanded is held in shape by springs; hence, any hat not injured by compressing. Crush room, a large room in a theater, opera house, etc., where the audience may promenade or converse during the intermissions; a foyer. Politics leave very little time for the bow window at White's in the day, or for the crush room of the opera at night. --Macaulay.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(crushes, crushing, crushed) 1. To crush something means to press it very hard so that its shape is destroyed or so that it breaks into pieces. Andrew crushed his empty can... Peel and crush the garlic. ...crushed ice. VERB: V n, V n, V-ed 2. To crush a protest or movement, or a group of opponents, means to defeat it completely, usually by force. The military operation was the first step in a plan to crush the uprising. VERB: V n • crushing ...the violent crushing of anti-government demonstrations. N-UNCOUNT: usu N of n 3. If you are crushed by something, it upsets you a great deal. Listen to criticism but don't be crushed by it. = devastate VERB: usu passive, be V-ed 4. If you are crushed against someone or something, you are pushed or pressed against them. We were at the front, crushed against the stage. VERB: usu passive, be V-ed prep 5. A crush is a crowd of people close together, in which it is difficult to move. Franklin and his thirteen-year-old son somehow got separated in the crush... N-COUNT: usu sing 6. If you have a crush on someone, you are in love with them but do not have a relationship with them. (INFORMAL) She had a crush on you, you know... N-COUNT: usu N on n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

v. a. 1. Compress, squeeze, bruise, contuse. 2. Break in pieces, crumble, disintegrate, comminute, bray. 3. Demolish, break down, shatter, raze. 4. Overpower, overcome, overwhelm, subdue, quell, conquer.

Moby Thesaurus

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