smash1 verbsmash2 noun
smashsmash1 /smæʃ/ ●●○ verb 
WORD ORIGINsmash1
Origin:
1600-1700 Perhaps from smack + mashVERB TABLE
smash
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | smash |
| he, she, it | smashes | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | smashed |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have smashed |
| he, she, it | has smashed | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had smashed |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will smash |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have smashed |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am smashing |
| he, she, it | is smashing | |
| you, we, they | are smashing | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was smashing |
| you, we, they | were smashing | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been smashing |
| he, she, it | has been smashing | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been smashing |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be smashing |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been smashing |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- Firefighters smashed a bedroom window and rescued a two-year-old girl.
- Her camera was smashed by soldiers when she tried to take photographs.
- I heard something smash. What broke?
- Police authorities say they have smashed a sophisticated insurance fraud ring.
- The boat hit the rocks and was smashed to pieces by the waves.
- The bottle rolled off the table and smashed to pieces on the floor.
- The burglars entered the house by smashing a window.
- The stock market rose so quickly it smashed all previous records.
- The vase fell and smashed into a million tiny pieces.
- And they drank a toast and smashed the Dixie cups underfoot and turned out the light and went to lunch.
- It smashed through the gates, tearing them off their hinges as though they were made of plastic.
- No force of nature, nothing paradoxical or demonic, he had no drive for smashing through the masks of appearances.
- She drove three kicks into his shins and smashed her handbag into the side of his head.
- The violence apparently escalated as white and black youths turned over a bus and began smashing shop windows.
- They used to smash it down, and it inevitably wound up spilling all over the car.
THESAURUSto break something
verb [transitive] to damage something and make it separate into pieces, for example by dropping it or hitting it: · Careful you don’t break the chair.· He broke his leg.
verb [transitive] to break something with a lot of force: · A policeman smashed his camera.
verb [transitive] to break something into two pieces, making a loud noise – used especially about long thin objects: · He snapped the sticks in two.
verb [transitive] to separate something into two pieces along a straight line: · Using a sharp knife, split the melon in half.
verb [transitive] to damage a bone, especially so that a line appears on the surface: · I fell over and fractured my wrist.
verb [transitive] to damage paper or cloth by pulling it so that it separates into pieces: · She tore up the letter and put it in the bin.· I tore my jacket.
to become broken verb [intransitive] to become damaged and separate into pieces: · Plastic breaks quite easily.
verb [intransitive] to break after being hit with a lot of force: · The bowl smashed as it hit the floor.
verb [intransitive] to break into a lot of small pieces: · The glass shattered all over the pavement.
verb [intransitive] if something cracks, a line appears on the surface, which means that it could later break into separate pieces: · The ice was starting to crack.
verb [intransitive] if a tyre, balloon, pipe etc bursts, it gets a hole and air or liquid suddenly comes out of it: · She blew up the balloon until it burst.
verb [intransitive] to break in a straight line: · The damp had caused the wood to split.
verb [intransitive] to break into a powder or a lot of small pieces: · The cork just crumbled in my hand.
Longman Language Activatorto break into a lot of pieces · One of the mugs rolled off the table and broke into bits on the stone floor.· Investigators are not sure what caused the plane to break into pieces and plunge into the ocean.
if a large object breaks up , it breaks into a lot of pieces especially as a result of natural forces, or serious damage: · The ice breaks up quicker near the shore.· Two of the missiles apparently broke up in flight.· The comet was formed when a planet broke up at some time in the distant past.
British go to pieces American to break into a lot of small pieces, especially because of being weak, old, or badly made: · The book had been read again and again, until it finally fell to pieces.· I picked the bag up, and it went to pieces in my hands.· The trunk was full of old dresses, some of which were falling to pieces.
to break easily into pieces, especially because of being badly made or very old: · I only bought these shoes last week, and they're falling apart already.· His jacket started coming apart at the seams.
if something disintegrates , it breaks into a lot of small pieces so that it is completely destroyed or so that it completely changes its form: · A 50-foot section of the roadway began to disintegrate after only a few cars had passed over it.· The plane disintegrated in midair.· The mummified man's clothes had disintegrated almost completely, but appeared to be mainly of leather and fur.
if something, especially glass, shatters , it breaks suddenly into a lot of very small pieces because it has been dropped or hit: · The glass had shattered, but the photograph itself was undamaged.· Storefront windows shattered and roofs blew off during the hurricane.· Don't try to drive nails into the bricks, they may shatter.
to noisily break into pieces as a result of being dropped or hit: · I heard something smash. What broke?smash to pieces/bits: · The bottle rolled off the table and smashed to pieces on the floor.
if something such as wood splinters , it breaks into thin, sharp pieces: · These types of wood splinter more easily than redwood or cedar.· The coating helps prevent the glass from splintering if it is hit by a rock while you are driving.
to break easily into a powder or into small pieces, especially as a result of being old or dry: · The autumn leaves crumbled in my fingers.· Some of the tiles are crumbling around the edges.
if something such as a tyre or a pipe bursts , the force of the air, water etc inside makes it break into many pieces: · The Concorde disaster was caused by a tyre bursting.· Thousands of gallons of oil flowed into the river when an oil pipeline burst.
especially American if a tyre blows , it breaks open suddenly and all the air comes out of it: · One of the tires blew and they skidded into the center divider.
to break something into a lot of pieces to break something into a lot of small pieces, especially in a violent way, by dropping, throwing, or hitting it: · Firefighters smashed a bedroom window and rescued a two-year-old girl.· Her camera was smashed by soldiers when she tried to take photographs.smash something to pieces/to bits: · The boat hit the rocks and was smashed to pieces by the waves.
to break something, especially glass, into a lot of very small pieces: · The explosion shattered office windows 500 metres away.· Protesters shattered a glass door and tossed red dye around the entrance.
to break something, especially food, into very small pieces: · Beat the eggs, crumble the cheese, and mix together.· Mrs. Suggs crumbled the bread into hot milk.
to damage something deliberately also vandalise British to deliberately damage buildings, vehicles, or public property: · All the public telephones in the area had been vandalized.· No-one is really sure why people vandalize their own neighbourhoods.
British to deliberately damage a room or building by breaking windows, furniture etc: smash something up: · They didn't only rob the house, they smashed it up too.smash up something: · About 400 rioters had seized control and were smashing up the jail.smash the place up: · Some of the men got drunk and smashed the place up.
especially American, informal to cause a lot of damage to a thing or place, either deliberately or by using it carelessly: · That kid of yours has trashed my VCR.trash the place spoken (=cause a lot of damage to a room or building): · Dad says it's OK to have the party here, as long as we don't trash the place.
to secretly damage machines or equipment so that they cannot be used, especially in order to harm an enemy: · The railway line had been sabotaged by enemy commandos.· Security lighting was sabotaged before the theft took place.
to deliberately and illegally damage or change a part of something in order to prevent it from working properly: · Someone had tampered with the lock on my door.· After the accident, police discovered that the car's brakes had been tampered with.
to deliberately spoil the appearance of something by writing on it, spraying paint on it etc: · Several of the gravestones had been defaced and were impossible to read.deface something with something: · The Central Bank issued a statement warning against defacing bank notes with what it called "indecent expressions".
to damage a church or other holy place: · The church had been desecrated by vandals.· Most of the Egyptian tombs were desecrated and robbed.
a car/train/plane etc hits something · The bus hit a tree and the driver was badly injured.· He pulled out of the driveway without looking, and almost hit another car.· Five sailors were killed when their ship hit a mine.hit something head-on (=directly) · The driver of a Ford van lost control and hit another car head-on.
to hit something that is directly in front of you with your vehicle, especially because you are not paying attention: · I turned too sharply and ran into the curb.· We almost ran into a Rolls-Royce that pulled out in front of us without signalling.
to hit and injure a person or animal while driving a vehicle: run over somebody/run somebody over: · How can you run over a child and not stop?be run over by something: · The boy's dog had been run over by a car.get run over: · Make sure the lights on your bike are working. I don't want you getting run over.
to hit something or someone very hard while you are driving a vehicle, making a lot of noise and causing damage: · The driver lost control on a curve and crashed into a tree.· An airplane had crashed into a mountain, killing all two hundred passengers.go crashing into something: · The car skidded, then went crashing into the bus shelter.· An army helicopter smashed into the side of the mountain.
to hit something or someone very hard while you are moving in a vehicle, especially when what you hit is not moving: · The driver had been drinking when he rammed into a car waiting at a red light.· Some idiot slammed into me from behind.
British /plow into American to hit a large number of vehicles or people with a vehicle, especially as a result of driving too fast, not paying attention etc: · The car went out of control and ploughed into a group of people on the sidewalk.· When the driver fell asleep, the bus ploughed into a line of traffic.
if two vehicles collide , they hit each other when they are moving in opposite directions: · Four or five cars had collided in the fog.collide with: · The transport helicopter he was in collided with another and crashed.
to deliberately hit another vehicle very hard, especially when it is not moving: · The ship had been rammed by a submarine.
British informal to hit something or someone with a vehicle: · Someone went into the back of my bike at the traffic lights.
WORD SETSace, nounace, verbball boy, nounball girl, nounbreak, noundeuce, noundouble fault, nounfault, nounfoot fault, nounforehand, nounground stroke, nounhard court, nounlob, verblove, nounmatch point, nounseed, verbsmash, verbsmash, nountennis court, nountennis shoe, nountiebreaker, nountramlines, noununseeded, adjective
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY
Several cups fell to the floor and smashed to pieces. The Beatles’ greatest hits. Which band had a hit with ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’?
Several cups fell to the floor and smashed to pieces. (=hit someone hard in the face or head) I’ll smash his head in if he comes here again!
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES I’ll smash his head in if he comes here again!· The vase fell and smashed to bits on the concrete floor.
The Beatles’ greatest hits. Which band had a hit with ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’? (=beat it easily)· She smashed the record by a massive 28 seconds.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB· Then the front door was smashed down and people streamed into the house.· It smashed down through the top of her skull on Christmas Eve while she was outside playing with friends.· With a great, grunting effort he brought his shield smashing down, like an axe, at the King.· The projectile was imperfectly aimed but exploded in Verdun, smashing down part of the Archbishop's palace.· Forster smashed down the locking lever, and pulled for all his worth.· She lashed out with her tail, overturning ships, smashing down a lighthouse.· She smashed down hard against it with the hammer, and the window shook, tiny cracks appeared like earthquake faults.· In almost all areas of modern life, the internet revolution has smashed down barriers and blurred boundaries.
· Its china face was smashed in, and one blue eye had disappeared.· The door was smashed in so often that it had to be bricked up.· Around 4.00 am Vadgama was buried and had his face smashed in with a shovel.· Only one very quiet pub and no shop windows to smash in after they've got drunk.· There was a thunderous crash as the door was smashed in.
· I see they didn't smash up your discs and equipment Pete.· Most of the 80 passengers and crew members watched safely from shore as the ship smashed up.· Do teenagers whose talents have been recognised at school get the urge to smash up the premises?· Made his name barging into their clubs and smashing up their meeting halls.· It's an unreal London where barristers can smash up restaurants without getting into trouble with the police or the Bar Council.· They also smashed up the peasants' illicit vodka stills.· And the stage was in a terrible mess, all blood and vomit, and the scenery all smashed up.· He spent three days in jail after smashing up an apartment, and has done time in a drug rehabilitation centre.
NOUN· He just smashed the bottle down across my hand.
· In one attack his invalid car was stolen and smashed.· In San Jose, about 8,000 people packed into a few downtown blocks, overturning cars and smashing windows.· Read in studio Two joyriders leapt out of a moving car causing it to smash into a house.· Thieves broke into five cars, smashing the nearside windows and taking radio cassette players and cash.· Too knackered to enjoy it, I crawled into my car and smashed it sedately into a concrete pillar.· Read in studio A stolen car has smashed into a bus full of passengers, and burst into flames.
· Something smashed hard against the door from the other side.· They smashed the door in and rushed inside.· But yesterday he found the would-be thieves had smashed the door lock in an attempt to break in.· The windows of the main building were smashed, the doors off their hinges, the locks broken.· The raiders smashed the front door panel of the garage shop and helped themselves from the cigarette shelves.· I just wanted to go out and smash a door down.· They broke in, smashing windows and doors and draping a flag out a second-floor window.
· He could just imagine the Woman hitting him, smashing at his face in the dark with the butt of her gun.· The police were right behind, and a cop tackled him, smashing his face into the sidewalk.· Demonstrators smashed in the face, hit with rocks.
· It had hurt him, as if some one had smashed a fist into his own face.
· He seized another wooden leg and smashed the glass in the nearest cases with it.· It was claimed that they poured their drinks over the counter and then smashed their beer glasses.· But they denied throwing and smashing their beer glasses at the pub.· During one of these rituals, I dropped and smashed one of the glasses, ruining my set.· Glass target: Vandals smashed a stained glass window worth £100 at a house in Willow Road, Northallerton.· He slipped on the stairs and smashed a glass panel as he tried to steady himself.
· A few feet away, a baseball bat crushed a schoolteacher's head, smashed his skull into a pulpy mess.· Whatever the reason, Toks' tighthead failed to get down and his head smashed against his opposition's shoulder.
· To prove a point I smashed a piece open and applied the magnets.· There are only perfect pieces or smashed pieces.· Telling me the strangest things sometimes, evil things - till I want to shout out or smash them to pieces.· Anything that gets in his way is smashed to pieces.· Their car had hardly turned the corner when the mob arrived and smashed the house to pieces.· The Sierra was smashed into four pieces in the accident.· Would the idyll she had dreamed of be there again, not smashed to pieces as it seemed to be?· It had been smashed to pieces because Timothy Gedge had followed them.
· In track, only world record-holder Wang Junxia has had staying power since smashing world records in 1993. 16.· This year's results will hopefully smash all previous records and break through the £50k barrier.· Nineteen ninety-five smashed all records for mergers and acquisitions at home and abroad.· He smashed the course record with a superb six-under-par 65.· In 1995, the stock market smashed more records than a disgruntled disk jockey.
· A few feet away, a baseball bat crushed a schoolteacher's head, smashed his skull into a pulpy mess.· They smashed its skull ... and then laid it back where they found it.
· If my anger breaks the glass, I could be smashed to smithereens.· There were the remains of a ship in a bottle, smashed to smithereens, and a rubber toy Bowie knife.· He says an overweight lorry in a crash will smash a car to smithereens.
· It smashed into a wall, showering coins.· It reminded him of the lizards smashed on his hotel wall.· But it's the electronic fist of technology which is smashing the walls between human and human.
· He storms round the garden and then tries to smash his way back into the house.· In these situations the Pump Wagon sustains D6 strength 6 hits due to damage sustained as it crunches and smashes its way through.· It was used by a gang ... who smashed their way into two pubs early this morning.· Without this intimidating ring of fire the herd might easily smash its way out.· Read in studio Thieves have used a mechanical digger to smash their way into a supermarket and steal a safe.· Officers smashed their way into the bungalow where they found the victims' bodies in separate rooms.· The raiders smashed their way into the trailer to silence Bob's barking before forcing the shop door.· I imagined Mark and me high on the Walker, on our sixth day, smashing our way up the face.
· The office window had been smashed.· Further fights broke out around the pub, and windows were smashed.· The door was locked, but one of the big blue-glass plate windows was smashed.· A window was smashed with an emergency escape hammer and six prisoners leapt out as the coach slowed.· Crook in particular was anxious to leave the ground floor flat because his windows had been smashed and he had been attacked.· Numerous assaults, cases of window smashing and the dissemination of graffiti continued unabated.· The outer windows had been smashed and the cut stone had been severely fissured.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES► smash-and-grab raid/attack etc
1[intransitive, transitive] to break into pieces violently or noisily, or to make something do this by dropping, throwing, or hitting it: - But that image collided head-on with life last month.
- He and Carter were doomed to collide head-on.
- Shortly after the £5 million junction was opened, two trains collided head-on killing four people and injuring 22.
- The cab control car of a commuter train being pushed from the rear collided head-on with an Amtrak diesel locomotive.
- They can collide head-on with what we believe to be right.
- And having got under them, he can't half tear them to pieces.
- Brandon Thomas opted to unveil his Aunt away from London fearful that the capital's theatre critics would tear it to pieces.
- He was thrown from his chariot and his horses tore him to pieces and devoured him.
- I had been given the power to obliterate, to steal a body from its grave and tear it to pieces.
- If Hyde returns while I am writing this confession, he will tear it to pieces to annoy me.
- Telling me the strangest things sometimes, evil things - till I want to shout out or smash them to pieces.
- We are lost, for they will surely tear us to pieces with their sharp claws.
- He says an overweight lorry in a crash will smash a car to smithereens.
Vandals had smashed all the windows. Firemen had to smash the lock to get in. Several cups fell to the floor and smashed to pieces.► see thesaurus at break2[intransitive, transitive always + adverb/preposition] to hit an object or surface violently, or to make something do this: A stolen car smashed into the bus. He smashed his fist down on the table.3smash a record to do something much faster, better etc than anyone has done before: The film smashed all box office records.4[transitive] to destroy something such as a political system or criminal organization: Police say they have smashed a major crime ring.5[transitive] to hit a high ball with a strong downward action, in tennis or similar gamessmash something ↔ down phrasal verb to hit a door, wall etc violently so that it falls to the groundsmash something ↔ in phrasal verb to hit something so violently that you break it and make a hole in it: The door had been smashed in.smash somebody’s face/head in (=hit someone hard in the face or head) I’ll smash his head in if he comes here again!smash something ↔ up phrasal verb to deliberately destroy something by hitting it: Hooligans started smashing the place up.smash1 verbsmash2 noun
smashsmash2 noun EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- Suddenly, there was a smash in the kitchen.
- the latest Broadway smash
- Gives it a smash, gives it a rip.
- Julia Roberts' beauty didn't stop Pretty Woman becoming a smash at the box office.
WORD SETS
ace, nounace, verbball boy, nounball girl, nounbreak, noundeuce, noundouble fault, nounfault, nounfoot fault, nounforehand, nounground stroke, nounhard court, nounlob, verblove, nounmatch point, nounseed, verbsmash, verbsmash, nountennis court, nountennis shoe, nountiebreaker, nountramlines, noununseeded, adjective
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES The Beatles’ greatest hits. Which band had a hit with ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’?
· The vase fell and smashed to bits on the concrete floor.
The Beatles’ greatest hits. Which band had a hit with ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’? (=beat it easily)· She smashed the record by a massive 28 seconds.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSNOUN· His first wife died in a car smash while he was driving.· Officially, he died in a car smash on the border.
· It may not be the London Palladium but it is a smash hit!· Have a great day and we hope your dot.com venture is a smash hit.· Daly has been, quite literally, the smash hit of the Masters with the crowds, attracting the biggest galleries.· Not since the surprise smash hit of the year cast a rosy glow over Shore's vehicle.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES► smash-and-grab raid/attack etc
1[countable] British English a serious road or railway accident – used especially in newspapers SYN crash: - But that image collided head-on with life last month.
- He and Carter were doomed to collide head-on.
- Shortly after the £5 million junction was opened, two trains collided head-on killing four people and injuring 22.
- The cab control car of a commuter train being pushed from the rear collided head-on with an Amtrak diesel locomotive.
- They can collide head-on with what we believe to be right.
- And having got under them, he can't half tear them to pieces.
- Brandon Thomas opted to unveil his Aunt away from London fearful that the capital's theatre critics would tear it to pieces.
- He was thrown from his chariot and his horses tore him to pieces and devoured him.
- I had been given the power to obliterate, to steal a body from its grave and tear it to pieces.
- If Hyde returns while I am writing this confession, he will tear it to pieces to annoy me.
- Telling me the strangest things sometimes, evil things - till I want to shout out or smash them to pieces.
- We are lost, for they will surely tear us to pieces with their sharp claws.
- He says an overweight lorry in a crash will smash a car to smithereens.
Young boy hurt in car smash.2[countable] (also smash hit) a new film, song etc which is very successful: a box-office smash (=a film which many people go to see at the cinema)3[countable] a hard downward shot in tennis or similar games4[singular] the loud sound of something breakingsmash of He heard the smash of glass.