1(of a structure) suddenly fall down or give way.

屋顶就在我头上塌了下来。

1. 1.1with object Cause (something) to fall down or give way.
   使倒塌；使塌陷
   it feels as if the slightest pressure would collapse it

   它给人以一种轻轻一碰就会倒塌的感觉。

   figurative many people tend to collapse the distinction between the two concepts

   〈喻〉许多人倾向于消除这两种观念之间的差别。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • The UK government's attempt to collapse the distinction between parenting and teaching is not entirely new.
   • Kavanagh was again on target on 33 minutes when Navan were penalised for collapsing a scrum after an extended period of Portlaoise pressure.
   • They had to row for their lives: as the sub exploded, collapsing the viaduct, debris showered upon them.
   • The most controversial moment of the afternoon had come however in the first half when English referee Chris Rees had awarded a penalty try when he penalised the home side for collapsing the maul.
   • It is improbable that a timetable for decommissioning would be enough to prevent him from resigning as First Minister and collapsing the executive.
   • The effect would be a level of military involvement that would serve to collapse the distinction between inspection and invasion/occupation.
   • The abstract nature of the work collapses many traditional boundaries.
   • With Realia, Aitken has taken on a daunting task, collapsing Greek myth, Japanese pop culture and a stream-of-consciousness rhythm into one book.
   • The background is the super-exposed town of Shishmaref in Western Alaska, where global warming and the thawing permafrost are collapsing towns in on themselves.
   • Issuing a message to unionists, he also urged them against alienating nationalists by collapsing the devolved institutions.
   • All in all, though, thanks for collapsing whole categories of moral and political thought.
   • They swarm across the planet like locusts, stripping environments bare and collapsing fragile economies.
   • Hundreds of male onlookers surged forward, collapsing the barriers all along the race track.
   • The prime minister may have to choose soon between staying in power as a lame duck or pressing ahead with disengagement by collapsing the government, which is opposed to the plan.
   • Aging, childbirth and weight gain relax the muscles and the fascia encasing them, collapsing the rim of the aperture.
   • By choosing to exhibit the heroin along side this footage Furmage collapses the spectacle of art with the spectacle of crime.
   • In her installation, Kennedy re-examines this hierarchy by collapsing any clear definition between humans and their natural counterparts.
   • Or the pressure could collapse the hole altogether.
   • After a textbook start, they took an early lead when Toulouse were penalised for collapsing the maul and Drahm kicked the subsequent penalty.
   • Vicky Lee Wei Kay collapses technology across more than 12 time zones and three languages.
2. 1.2usually as adjective collapsed (of a lung or blood vessel) fall inwards and become flat and empty.
   （肺，血管）萎陷
   a collapsed lung

   一叶已萎陷的肺。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • She had a ruptured liver, one collapsed lung, one punctured lung, broken ribs and broken collar bone as well as the huge gash in her back and other injuries.
   • The fabric was sodden, but the bleeding had ceased, perhaps the vein had collapsed.
   • They showed that in the emphysematous lung, the airways collapsed early in expiration and trapped expired air.
   • IP is in hospital - collapsed lung, broken ribs, swelling & bruising.
   • But in some cases cats' lungs collapse or their ribs fracture due to difficulty breathing.
   • He survived the accident for a week and was recovering from two operations on a broken pelvis when he contracted an infection and his lungs collapsed.
   • What is not so good is the fact that, due to extensive chemotherapy, my veins have all collapsed.
   • A posterolateral thoracotomy was performed and the chest was entered through the fifth interspace, with the left lung collapsed.
   • It was there he began forging prescriptions to supply himself with the painkiller pethidine, which he injected for six months to the point where his veins collapsed.
   • The operation was long and difficult and Emily spent four weeks in hospital undergoing physiotherapy because her lungs had collapsed.
   • And in fact, there is evidence that the jugular vein has collapsed.
   • He then fell ill with pneumonia and died after a lung collapsed and he suffered kidney failure.
   • Thereafter, a continuing rise in inflation pressure with volume opened the flooded and collapsed lung abruptly.
   • Her lungs collapsed, her skull was fractured, and she had lost the vision in her left eye.
   • Miraculously, Cobb survived a torn aorta, torn diaphragm, collapsed left lung and kidney failure.
   • Surfactant helps to keep the baby's alveoli open; without surfactant, the lungs collapse and the baby is unable to breathe.
   • He had sustained a penetrating bullet wound to his chest on the right side. Air had rushed into his chest and his right lung collapsed.
   • Then they realized he had a bullet lodged between his heart and collapsed lung.
   • The first goal can usually be achieved by using PEEP to recruit and stabilize previously collapsed lung tissue.
   • RSPCA officers and the rescue volunteers then spent much of the day trying to keep the whale upright to stop its lungs collapsing.
3. 1.3with object Cause (a lung or blood vessel) to collapse.
   使（肺，血管）萎陷
   he had an operation to collapse his lung

   Example sentencesExamples

   • The amount of pressure to collapse the airway is six times greater.
   • Medical tests have established that the amount of pressure needed to occlude the arteries is six times less than the pressure needed to collapse the airway.
   • The left lung was collapsed and superiorly encased by tumor.
   • In addition, a thin layer of liquid lining the alveoli exerts surface tension, tending to collapse the lungs, although this surface tension is greatly decreased by the presence of surfactant.

2(of a person) fall down and become unconscious as a result of illness or injury.

他因失血而昏倒。

1. 2.1 Sit or lie down as a result of exhaustion or amusement.
   （因疲劳或为逗乐而）霍地坐下（或躺下）
   exhausted, he collapsed on the bed

   他累得一下子瘫坐在床上。

   the three of them collapsed with laughter

   他们三人笑得前俯后仰。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • He ran himself into the ground, and collapsed with exhaustion at the end of the game.
   • A couple of years ago, as she was reaching the pinnacle of her career, she returned from an international book tour so exhausted that she collapsed into bed and slept for 24 hours.
   • Tenchiki entered his room and collapsed onto his yet folded futon.
   • Not long after, the turmoil took its toll and she collapsed on set with exhaustion.
   • And at one point on the set she and another actress collapsed in fits of laughter because Walters was unable to glare angrily.
   • As for me, I trudged myself up to my room, threw down my bag and folder, and collapsed onto a space on my floor.
   • However, even allowing for the unsuitability of his footwear, the attempt on goal that follows is truly awful and Abramovich collapses in fits of laughter as the ball limply trundles wide of the post.
   • Her eyes filling with tears, Autumn backed away from the door and back to her cot where she collapsed.
   • Late that night, when the children had fallen asleep and the last neighbour had collapsed under the table, Aurelia appeared in her glittery dress.
   • We collapsed in laughter and exhaustion onto the sofa and switched the telly on.
   • With a final cry of exhaustion Joy collapsed on the ground.
   • I hoped to wake up a bit on the tube ride north but that didn't happen either, and I eventually found myself staggering home with just enough energy to open the front door, close it and collapse on the duvet.
   • I hung up the phone and then collapsed in exhaustion onto my bed.
   • He wandered back to his cell, and collapsed onto his cot.
   • He rescued more injured comrades and extinguished the fire before collapsing from exhaustion.
   • He collapsed in pain and exhaustion just as the door burst open again.
   • Three days later, Shuttlesworth rose from bed, where he had remained since collapsing from exhaustion at the Gaston Motel press conference.
   • He slammed the door shut behind him and collapsed against it, closing his eyes and gulping air in an effort to quell his anger.
   • We returned to the flat and collapsed onto the sofa again before putting music on the CD player again.
   • In fact, the last time he was in London we had a memorable night out on the town, with him finally collapsing on my couch in Soho after we got in from a nightclub at 6am.

3Fail suddenly and completely.

1. 3.1 (of a price or currency) drop suddenly in value.
   （价格）突然下跌；（货币）突然贬值
   the price of oil collapsed

   Example sentencesExamples

   • Who knew the share-price was about to collapse because the structure was so unsteady?
   • But Iran and Venezuela urging restraint, fearing oil prices could collapse if the market gets swamped.
   • Even though the currency was collapsing and the poverty was bad, you could see the history and beauty in it.
   • It was perceived as a safe option as it would hold its value when other assets and currencies collapsed in value.
   • Sure, it hurts to see a stock continue to rise once you have sold it, but it is often better to sell on the way up than to wait until you have to dump the stock while the price is collapsing after its peak.
   • The worst-case scenario is that the single currency will collapse, leaving member countries to start afresh with their discarded currencies.
   • France was isolated; its economy and currency were collapsing.
   • The share price subsequently collapsed to a recent price of around $2.
   • The company's share price collapsed during the technology downturn, to the point where it was worth less than the cash it had in the bank.
   • But when prices collapsed in the mid-1970s there was little left but neglected farms and a once promising agricultural sector.
   • After the price collapsed, Tan was investigated for manipulating the market.
   • When the Indonesian currency collapsed, the retail price of soya escalated, making the cooking oil far too expensive for the bulk of the people to afford.
   • In both cases the currency collapsed rather quickly in spite of the loans.
   • The price of silver collapsed as other countries rushed to join Germany on the ‘gold standard’.
   • Over the past decade the dysfunctional global financial system has experienced repeated currency collapses.
   • There hasn't been enough water to grow vegetables here since January; the rice crop was poor this year because of drought, and the rice price collapsed.
   • The share price collapsed from 246p to 36p and the company had to be saved by a £277m rights issue.
   • The chancellor had ordered a review of North Sea taxation in 1997, but was forced to put it on a back burner a year later when the oil price collapsed.
   • Institutions are rejecting warnings that house prices could collapse because low interest rates are likely to be held far into next year.
   • Its cash strength saw it through the turbulent waters of the early 1990s when the price of property collapsed.

4Fold or be foldable into a small space.

有些帆布床可以折叠起来，放进袋子或轻便旅行袋里。

1. 4.1with object Compress a displayed part of (a spreadsheet or other electronic document)
   重叠，套缩（空白表格程序或其他电子文档）的显示部分
   tabulation programs can be used to collapse this list in various ways

   制表程序可用于以各种方式套缩这份列表。

1An instance of a structure falling down or giving way.

一座铁路桥梁的倒塌。

这座教堂的屋顶有倒塌的危险。

1. 1.1 A sudden failure of an institution or undertaking.
   突然倒闭；崩溃；瓦解
   the collapse of a number of prominent banks

   Example sentencesExamples

   • A sudden collapse of the pound could lead to equal and opposite problems, such as galloping inflation.
   • One creditor owed a four figure sum demanded an inquiry into the sudden collapse of the club.
   • This has prompted warnings that the disclosure of the real level of bad debt could set off a wave of corporate failures and banking collapses in the following year.
   • The service sector is the only industry where BDO predicts a fall in business collapses.
   • Is British manufacturing in difficulty, as seen in the case of MG Rover's collapse this month, or in fact in a healthy condition - as seen by Honda's continued success?
   • Crawford was referring to allegations in a leaked Scottish Enterprise document that a number of the agency's projects are close to collapse because of mismanagement and internal squabbling.
   • Fears persist that the collapse of both institutions is unavoidable, leaving a dangerous political vacuum which could be filled by increased violence.
   • On the ground, societies went into free fall with the collapse of the Soviet Union.
   • For members of AI, the debate is triggered by distress at the suffering in states torn apart by armed conict or by the collapse of governmental structures.
   • When the New Rome falls, its collapse may come from within.
   • The world has not been clearly reconfigured since the end of the Cold War, which signaled the collapse of a two-polar structure in the world.
   • Some of the more spectacular failures include the collapse of Pan American Airways in 1991.
   • Yet, there is a real danger that a complete collapse of the dollar will harm the eurozone more than the US.
   • That timescale has long since passed, and the Football Association has admitted the whole scheme was close to collapse unless they procured more central funding.
   • In the end, Cicero himself fell prey to a collapse of the representative system of government his vision of political rhetoric had fostered.
   • Overseas visitors to Kerry who have been affected by the sudden collapse of an American tour operator have been promised they would return home with happy memories of their trip.
   • Wickets fell steadily, but not too fast, until suddenly we had a collapse, four wickets falling for ducks.
   • The surge has sparked concerns that property prices are rising too fast, and that a sudden collapse could damage the overall economy and cause financial sector insolvencies.
   • Sure, an economic collapse or political shock could reverse these gains.
   • A small family business has revealed how the sudden collapse of construction company Benson left it £52,000 out of pocket.

   Synonyms

   breakdown, failure, disintegration, foundering, miscarriage, lack of success

   halt, end, termination
2. 1.2 A physical or mental breakdown.
   （身体或精神上的）崩溃；垮掉
   he suffered a collapse from overwork

   他因过度操劳而病倒。

   mass noun she's lying there in a state of collapse

   她躺在那儿，处于崩溃状态。

   Example sentencesExamples

   • Hölder was offered a post in Tübingen in 1889 but unfortunately he suffered a mental collapse.
   • During his attacks Schumann too feared that he would take his own life or suffer a complete mental collapse.
   • Yet Christiane is also weak, suffering a mental collapse when her husband flees to the West, and refusing to live her life the way she wants to out of fear.
   • After his return to Lithuania he suffered a mental collapse, and he died in an asylum near Warsaw.
   • The life saving pack contains equipment to deal with heart conditions, falls and other home accidents, sports accidents, collapses and seizures and many other emergencies.
   • She was close to collapse but noted that the young, smartly dressed woman on her doorstep didn't physically help her.
   • There was nothing much more to be said, because I could sense how scared Will had been at my sudden collapse and I also could feel his apologetic air.
   • Dr Benbow said Mr Rigby was ‘close to death’ and may have suffered a terminal collapse and fallen after going on to the balcony for some fresh air.
   • Caroline Lynch makes a strong impression as Lady Macbeth but the truncated text allows her little room for development and so her collapse and death feel sudden and unaccountable.
   • By the time he made it there, he was absolutely exhausted and on the verge of a mental collapse.
   • At the height of his fame he suffered a nervous collapse, precipitated by family tragedy.
   • Within three weeks of Castillon, Henry VI suffered a mental and physical collapse which lasted for 17 months and from which he may never have fully recovered.
   • They told me she'd suffered a collapse, all the heat and standing around in there must've got to her since she wasn't feeling well before.
   • Defibrillation within three minutes of a witnessed collapse gave the best chance of survival.
   • Indeed Einstein's life had been hectic and he was to pay the price in 1928 with a physical collapse brought on through overwork.
   • He describes a scene surrounding the collapse of a young woman on an aeroplane, who appears pale, ‘dead, or dying,’ with dilated pupils.
   • Andrew took a number of the tablets, began behaving oddly and was close to collapse at the end of the night.
   • The impact on health is that many of the improving measures of mortality that were seen before the collapse have been replaced by increasing disparities afterwards.
   • It had been widely reported that Terri suffered from a eating disorder which caused a chemical imbalance that led to her collapse.
   • Banquo's ghost was dispensed with, though Ian McKellen's astonishing evocation of Macbeth's mental collapse made any physical manifestation redundant.

   Synonyms

   breakdown, attack, seizure, prostration, nervous breakdown, nervous/mental collapse, nervous exhaustion, nervous tension, crisis, personal crisis, psychological trauma

   informal crack-up