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Glite Dictionary
🏚️ Falling apart 🧱 Breaking down
crumbling

crumbling

3.9
The process of breaking into small pieces and falling apart
  • noun
  • /ˈkrʌmbəlɪŋ/
translation icon : desmoronamiento
  • The crumbling of the ancient wall revealed layers of history underneath.

The gradual crumbling that left unaltered the face of the whole is cut short by a sunburst which in one flash illuminates the features of the New World.

Examples

  • The crumbling of the old building made it unsafe for anyone to enter.

  • Residents were concerned about the crumbling of the roads after heavy rain.

  • [ Rock Crumbling ][ Roaring ]

    The Flintstones (1994)

  • Everything for the public? Elevators, subways, lavatories? Crumbling.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • The gradual crumbling that left unaltered the face of the whole is cut short by a sunburst which in one flash illuminates the features of the New World.

    Gregory B. Sadler - That Philosophy Guy

Synonyms

breaking
vscrumbling
224 1.7

To cause something to fall into pieces or become damaged

describes a spontaneous gradual falling apart rather than an active damaging action
breakdown
vscrumbling
  • Specialized
19 4.1

A process in which a substance is broken into simpler parts by chemicals or living things

is more general, meaning a physical gradual collapse rather than a technical process
disintegration
vscrumbling
6 6.2

Something breaks into smaller pieces and falls apart

is slower and focuses on gradual loss of structure rather than decay
fragmentation
vscrumbling
5 6.3

Breaking something into small pieces, often by force

happens more slowly and by gradual collapse rather than sudden force
splintering
vscrumbling
3 4.6

An act of wood breaking that sends out small sharp pieces

is duller and implies gradual falling into many tiny pieces rather than sharp shards
breakage
vscrumbling
2 4.4

Damage that makes something in pieces or not usable

focuses on the ongoing process of falling apart not the quantity of damage

Antonyms

stability
363 3.1

Being steady and not likely to change

maintenance
350 3.6

Keeping something in good working order by checking and fixing it regularly

Compounds

crumbling chimney
5.6

The tall brick part of a house that is breaking apart and losing pieces

How Fallen Apart

collapse
350 4.1
crumbling
3.9

Surface Forms

crumbling singular
crumbings plural

Morphology

crumbling = crumble (transparent) = crumble + ing

This noun is a gerund/nominalization of 'crumble' using '-ing' to denote the action or process, which is a regular and transparent formation.

Etymology

Crumbling comes from crumb ('small piece') and means the process of breaking into small pieces. So the 'crumbling' of a building is the slow falling apart of its parts into lots of bits.