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Glite Dictionary
head crash

head crash

8.6
An accident when the small moving part that reads a hard drive touches the disk and destroys data
  • noun
  • /hɛd kræʃ/
  • Specialized
translation icon : fallo de cabezal
  • The risk of a head crash increases if you move your computer while it's running.

Examples

  • A sudden jolt caused a head crash, destroying years of important data.

  • Engineers examined the hard drive and confirmed that a head crash had occurred.

  • The head crash resulted in significant data loss.

  • After the head crash, we had to replace the hard drive.

  • A severe head crash can result in permanent data loss from the hard drive.

  • The technician explained that a head crash often leads to the inability to recover stored files.

  • After experiencing a head crash, the computer failed to boot up correctly.

Synonyms

disk error
vshead crash
  • Specialized
3.8

A problem when a computer cannot open or save files on a disk because the disk is damaged

involves physical contact of the read write head with the disk surface causing damage

Surface Forms

head crash singular
head crashes plural

Morphology

head + crash

The noun combines 'head' (a part of an object) with 'crash' (a collision/failure), so a learner could infer a collision or failure involving some 'head' component. However, the precise meaning — the read/write head of a hard disk contacting the disk surface — is a specialized technical sense of 'head' that is not predictable to a B1 learner without domain knowledge, so the relation is only partially transparent.

Etymology

Head crash comes from computer hard drives. When the tiny head that reads data hits the spinning disk and crashes, it destroys files and breaks the drive, so the phrase means 'data loss' or 'hardware failure'.