melt down 1 of 2

as in to crack
to yield to mental or emotional stress rather than melt down, the team strengthened their resolve and ended up winning the game

Synonyms & Similar Words

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meltdown

2 of 2

noun

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of meltdown
Verb
Maxar Grossi added that a direct hit on the Bushehr power plant could also cause a dangerous meltdown and radioactive leak. Nbc News, NBC news, 21 June 2025 These smart picks help turn idle airtime into downtime well spent—no Wi-Fi meltdown or screaming toddler required. Jill Schildhouse, Forbes.com, 11 June 2025
Noun
In fact, during antiquity, most statues depicting gods, heroes and politicians were later destroyed or melted down to make tools, such as weapons or even kitchen utensils, according to the University of Maryland. Brendan Rascius, Miami Herald, 26 June 2025 When a system is melting down at 3 a.m. and the on-call engineer is bleary-eyed, that’s when your tool’s UX truly matters. Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 24 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for meltdown
Recent Examples of Synonyms for meltdown
Verb
  • In the past four years, four Utes TEs (Cole Fotheringham, Thomas Yassmin, Dalton Kincaid, and now Lohner) have cracked pro rosters.
    Luca Evans, Denver Post, 7 July 2025
  • Last month, the company announced plans to drive vehicles manually in New York for testing, marking the first step toward potentially cracking the largest U.S. city.
    Jennifer Elias, CNBC, 7 July 2025
Noun
  • Hudson’s Bay was spun off and went bankrupt, Saks and Neiman’s vendors were thrown into a tailspin by a yearlong schedule to repay past due bills and 90-day payment terms on all shipments going forward.
    Evan Clark, Footwear News, 7 July 2025
  • The loss of an apex predator, the introduction of an invasive species or even minor changes in climate or weather events can send island ecosystems into a tailspin.
    Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 6 July 2025
Noun
  • Automatic proposal drafting, data ingestion, and benchmarking collapse non-billable hours, freeing margin that can be redeployed as fee discounts or reinvested in service upgrades or tooling.
    Noah Ohrner, Forbes.com, 14 July 2025
  • Metallica famously initiated the landmark lawsuit against peer-to-peer file sharing company Napster in 2000, which led to further suits that ultimately caused the company's initial collapse.
    Peter Aitken, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 July 2025
Noun
  • The dog remained unfazed during Fowler's minor freak-out.
    Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 July 2025
  • Oasis’s last tour, in 2008, was riven by fights, freak-outs, and sibling rivalry.
    Air Mail, Air Mail, 7 June 2025
Noun
  • For these communities and others like them (our thoughts are with the people of Central Texas), several days of disaster usually means years of arduous reconstruction.
    Louis Gritzo, Forbes.com, 15 July 2025
  • Additionally, the general public came to mistrust and reject nuclear energy projects, further disillusioned by the Three Mile Island disaster.
    Time, Time, 15 July 2025
Noun
  • But the high demands of a relentless industry proved too much and in late December 1964, Wilson suffered a nervous breakdown and stopped touring, becoming a full-time studio artist for the better part of more than a decade after that.
    Christina Maxouris, CNN Money, 11 June 2025
  • This looser, more straightforward approach works for the smaller scale and scope of Bottle Rocket, which begins with Luke Wilson’s Anthony leaving a voluntary treatment facility in Arizona after suffering a nervous breakdown.
    Shannon Carlin, Time, 30 May 2025
Noun
  • Despite concern over an entry-level job bloodbath, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon says businesses are still clamoring for young talent.
    Brit Morse, Fortune, 24 June 2025
  • Countless bloodbaths, several betrayals and 454 deaths later, Gi-hun, the baby and the baby's father—player No. 333 (played by Yim Si-wan), also known as Myung-gi—make it to the final game.
    Soo Kim, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 June 2025
Verb
  • The boy stuck his head through the dividers and appeared to be choking, according to the witness, who said Smith laughed and pushed the boy’s head back through the divider.
    Meredith Colias-Pete, Chicago Tribune, 11 July 2025
  • In addition to the chickens, Frank flushed his shoes down one of the toilets, Dennis and Dee kept blowing fuses with the scheme's need for a power-sucking vacuum sealer, and the basement was choked with carbon monoxide.
    Dennis Perkins, EW.com, 10 July 2025

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“Meltdown.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/meltdown. Accessed 21 Jul. 2025.

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