What does crackup mean?
A crackup is, at its core, a collapse — whether of a person, a machine, or one's composure. Most seriously, it denotes a mental or emotional breakdown, as when sustained stress finally causes someone to suffer a crackup and withdraw from work or daily life. In older and informal usage, especially American English, it can refer to a crash or collision involving a car or aircraft. On a much lighter register, calling someone or something "a crackup" means they are hilariously funny — a friend whose antics leave everyone laughing is a real crackup. The word derives from the verb phrase "crack up," which itself captures both senses of cracking: breaking apart physically and breaking down emotionally. Informal in tone throughout, it suits conversational speech and journalism more than formal writing, where "nervous breakdown," "collision," or "hilarious" may be preferred depending on the sense intended.
nounA crackup is a physical or emotional collapse — most commonly a nervous or mental breakdown — or, in informal American usage, an incident of crashing (as of a vehicle or aircraft). It can also mean something or someone extremely funny.
- A mental or emotional breakdown; a collapse under psychological strain.
- An act of crashing, especially involving a vehicle or aircraft (informal).
- Something or someone very amusing; a person given to making others laugh (informal).
"After months of unrelenting pressure at work, he suffered a serious crackup and took leave to recover."
"The comedian was such a crackup that the whole audience was in tears."
"Investigators examined the wreckage after the plane's crackup on the runway."
Standard pluralization; used when referring to multiple incidents or people described as crackups.
"The airline's safety record improved markedly after a string of crackups in the early years."
One word, three disasters and a laugh: a crackup can be a car wreck, a nervous breakdown, or someone so funny they leave you helpless.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of crackup
Crackup arises from the phrasal verb "crack up," formed from "crack," a Middle English word (from Old French cracquier) meaning to break or split with a sharp sound. By the nineteenth century, "crack up" had developed figurative senses — to praise highly, to break down physically or mentally, and to crash a vehicle — and the noun "crackup" followed from these uses. Its cognates are essentially other descendants of the same Germanic-rooted verb family that gave English "crack," "crackle," and related forms.
How crackup is actually used
"Crackup" is informal in all its senses. The "breakdown" sense often appears with modifiers like "nervous" or "complete." The "funny thing/person" sense is chiefly North American colloquial. The vehicle-crash sense is somewhat dated but still understood.
Easily confused with crackup
"Crack-up" is simply the hyphenated variant spelling of the same noun; the hyphenation differs by style guide rather than meaning.