ZebraWords.com - The Definition of 'Fracture', Synonyms of 'Fracture' & More on 'Fracture'

1. WordNet® 3.0 (2006)

fracture
    n 1: breaking of hard tissue such as bone; "it was a nasty
         fracture"; "the break seems to have been caused by a fall"
         [syn: fracture, break]
    2: (geology) a crack in the earth's crust resulting from the
       displacement of one side with respect to the other; "they
       built it right over a geological fault"; "he studied the
       faulting of the earth's crust" [syn: fault, faulting,
       geological fault, shift, fracture, break]
    3: the act of cracking something [syn: fracture, crack,
       cracking]
    v 1: violate or abuse; "This writer really fractures the
         language"
    2: interrupt, break, or destroy; "fracture the balance of power"
    3: break into pieces; "The pothole fractured a bolt on the axle"
    4: become fractured; "The tibia fractured from the blow of the
       iron pipe"
    5: break (a bone); "She broke her clavicle"
    6: fracture a bone of; "I broke my foot while playing hockey"
       [syn: fracture, break]

2. The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Fracture \Frac"ture\ (?; 135), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Fractured
   (#; 135); p. pr. & vb. n.. Fracturing.] [Cf. F. fracturer.]
   To cause a fracture or fractures in; to break; to burst
   asunder; to crack; to separate the continuous parts of; as,
   to fracture a bone; to fracture the skull.
   [1913 Webster] frenulum

3. The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Fracture \Frac"ture\ (?; 135), n. [L. fractura, fr. frangere,
   fractum, to break: cf. F. fracture. See Fraction.]
   1. The act of breaking or snapping asunder; rupture; breach.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. (Surg.) The breaking of a bone.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. (Min.) The texture of a freshly broken surface; as, a
      compact fracture; an even, hackly, or conchoidal fracture.
      [1913 Webster]

   Comminuted fracture (Surg.), a fracture in which the bone
      is broken into several parts.

   Complicated fracture (Surg.), a fracture of the bone
      combined with the lesion of some artery, nervous trunk, or
      joint.

   Compound fracture (Surg.), a fracture in which there is an
      open wound from the surface down to the fracture.

   Simple fracture (Surg.), a fracture in which the bone only
      is ruptured. It does not communicate with the surface by
      an open wound.

   Syn: Fracture, Rupture.

   Usage: These words denote different kinds of breaking,
          according to the objects to which they are applied.
          Fracture is applied to hard substances; as, the
          fracture of a bone. Rupture is oftener applied to soft
          substances; as, the rupture of a blood vessel. It is
          also used figuratively. "To be an enemy and once to
          have been a friend, does it not embitter the rupture?"
          --South.
          [1913 Webster]

Thesaurus Results for fracture:

1. Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

abrade, abrasion, abysm, abyss, amuse, arroyo, bark, beguile, blemish, bloody, box canyon, breach, break, break open, break up, breakage, breaking, burn, burst, bust, canyon, cavity, chafe, chap, chasm, check, chimney, chink, chip, claw, cleavage, cleave, cleft, cleuch, clough, col, come apart, come unstuck, concussion, convulse, coulee, couloir, crack, crackle, cranny, craze, crevasse, crevice, cut, cut apart, cwm, defile, delight, dell, dike, disintegrate, ditch, divert, division, donga, draw, enliven, entertain, excavation, exfoliate, exhilarate, fall to pieces, fault, fissure, flash burn, flaw, flume, fracture one, fray, frazzle, fret, furrow, gall, gap, gape, gash, give away, give way, gorge, groove, gulch, gulf, gully, hole, hurt, incise, incision, injure, injury, joint, kill, kloof, knock dead, lacerate, laceration, leak, lesion, loosen up, maim, make mincemeat of, maul, moat, mortal wound, mutilate, mutilation, notch, nullah, open, opening, pass, passage, pierce, puncture, raise a laugh, raise a smile, ravine, recreate, refresh, regale, relax, rend, rent, rift, rime, rip, rive, run, rupture, savage, scald, scale, schism, scissure, scorch, scotch, scrape, scratch, scuff, seam, second-degree burn, separate, separation, skin, slash, slay, slice, slit, slot, snap, solace, sore, splinter, split, sprain, spring a leak, stab, stab wound, start, stick, strain, tear, third-degree burn, tickle, titillate, trauma, traumatize, trench, valley, void, wadi, wound, wounds immedicable, wow, wrench

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