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collapse

collapse

323 4.1
A sudden failure, for example of a person or a building
  • noun
  • /kəˈlæps/
: colapso
  • The chair frame showed no signs of collapse or fatigue despite the repeated testing.
  • economic collapse
  • price collapse
  • oil price collapse

So if we're witnessing A nutrient collapse, what's causing it?

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Examples

  • With the collapse of the East block, government authority also collapsed.

  • The unexpected collapse of the old bridge left many commuters stranded.

  • Some of the results of the collapse of the oil price are political as well as economic.

    Academic text (1999)
  • I also remember from childhood the surprise collapse of the Soviet Union.

  • So there's been a huge collapse in social trust as well.

  • But we were on the brink of collapse of some of our infrastructure.

  • What scares you more, the collapse of liberal values or AI?

  • Plants and plankton rapidly died, causing the collapse of food webs worldwide.

  • Her sudden collapse during the marathon shocked everyone at the event.

  • After years of financial struggle, the company announced its collapse last week.

Synonyms

disaster
vscollapse
∞ 1.0

A sudden event that causes great damage, loss, or failure

is focused on sudden failure rather than mainly physical damage
fall
vscollapse
141 2.5

A sudden drop in amount, value, or importance

is broader and also includes physical falling or structural giving way
crash
vscollapse
92 5.2

A sudden large fall in business activity or stock prices

is wider, covering sudden failure beyond financial losses or market drops
debacle
vscollapse
77 8.5

A sudden complete failure that causes public embarrassment or big loss

is more neutral and applies to sudden failures without public disgrace
breakdown
vscollapse
68 4.4

A failure in a system or relationship that stops it working properly

is broader and covers sudden falling or failure of people, structures, and businesses
downfall
vscollapse
66 5.1

A sudden loss of power or status caused by a mistake

is more general and applies to sudden failure of things, not just status loss
meltdown
vscollapse
56 5.8

A sudden total failure that causes serious damage to a system

is less extreme and can mean sudden failure without total destruction
implosion
vscollapse
28 7.6

A sudden inward collapse of a building or container from outside pressure

is not limited to inward giving and covers other sudden failures
cave-in
vscollapse
11 7.1

A sudden collapse of the ground or a building into the space below

is broader and also applies to sudden failures outside physical ground or structures
sudden breakdown
vscollapse
1 3.5

An unexpected failure of a machine that stops it working

is broader, applying to people, structures, businesses, or systems

Antonyms

∞ 1.0

Getting what you want after working hard

283 3.1

Being steady and not likely to change

Compounds

1 7.9

A star or other space object falls inward because of its own gravity and becomes smaller and denser

How Severe

ruin
90 3.2
collapse
323 4.1
breakdown
17 3.5
malfunction
98 4.5

Surface Forms

collapse singular
collapses plural

Etymology

Collapse comes from the Latin collabi, which means 'to fall together' and is made of col- 'together' and labi 'to slip'. You can see the same root in the word lapse, which also means a 'slip'. So a collapse is a sudden fall or failure of a person, a building, or a system.