crushing
/ˈkɹʌ.ʃɪŋ/adjective, noun, verb
crushing is spelled C-R-U-S-H-I-N-G: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 6.8 times per million words in written English, the 9,165th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, crushing means “That crushes; overwhelming” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in crushing?
| Letters | 8: C-R-U-S-H-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 6.8 times per million words; the 9,165th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is crushing?
Crushing appears 6.8 times per million words in written English, the 9,165th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce crushing?
- /ˈkɹʌ.ʃɪŋ/
Crushing has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-crushing.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of crushing
- more crushing comparative
- most crushing superlative
- crushings plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does crushing mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
That crushes; overwhelming.
a crushing defeat
- 2
Devastatingly disheartening.
crushing blow
noun
- 1
The action of the verb to crush.
- 2
A former method of execution by placing heavy weights on the victim.
- 3
Crushed material.
oilseed crushings
- 4
The act of subjecting sugarcane to crushing.
verb
- 1
present participle and gerund of crush
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Crushing in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | écrasant , broyage |
| German | niederschmetternd |
| Portuguese | arrasador |
| Spanish | arrollador, aplastante |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does crushing come from?
By surface analysis, crush + -ing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).