Adjacent Words

fall apart definitions

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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: lose one's emotional or mental composure; "She fell apart when her only child died" [syn: fall apart, go to pieces]
2: go to pieces; "The lawn mower finally broke"; "The gears wore out"; "The old chair finally fell apart completely" [syn: break, wear, wear out, bust, fall apart]
3: break or fall apart into fragments; "The cookies crumbled"; "The Sphinx is crumbling" [syn: crumble, fall apart]
4: become separated into pieces or fragments; "The figurine broke"; "The freshly baked loaf fell apart" [syn: break, separate, split up, fall apart, come apart]

Merriam Webster's

phrasal 1. disintegrate 2. to succumb to mental or emotional stress ; break down

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

1. If something falls apart, it breaks into pieces because it is old or badly made. The work was never finished and bit by bit the building fell apart. PHRASAL VERB: V P 2. If an organization or system falls apart, it becomes disorganized or unable to work effectively, or breaks up into its different parts. Europe's monetary system is falling apart... I've tried everything to stop our marriage falling apart. = break down PHRASAL VERB: V P, V P 3. If you say that someone is falling apart, you mean that they are becoming emotionally disturbed and are unable to think calmly or to deal with the difficult or unpleasant situation that they are in. (INFORMAL) I was falling apart. I wasn't getting any sleep. = crack up PHRASAL VERB: V P