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Added 8 October 2026

crackle

/ˈkɹækəl/ noun

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about crackle at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

The sharp sound of snapping noises.
Glazed china with a network of fine cracks on the surface.

verb

Make a crackling sound.
My Rice Krispies crackled in the bowl
Make a crushing noise.
his shoes were crunching on the gravel
To become, or to cause to become, covered with a network of small cracks.
The blazing sun crackled the desert sand

adjective

Having the surface decorated with a network of fine cracks, as in crackleware.
a crackle glaze

Origin

From Middle English crakelen, equivalent to crack + -le (frequentative suffix). The physics sense is part of a facetious sequence "snap, crackle, pop", after the mascots of Rice Krispies cereal.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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