Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • intransitive verb To make a succession of slight sharp snapping noises.
  • intransitive verb To show liveliness, energy, or intensity.
  • intransitive verb To become covered with a network of fine cracks; craze.
  • intransitive verb To crush (paper, for example) with sharp snapping sounds.
  • intransitive verb To cause (china, for example) to become covered with a network of fine cracks.
  • noun The act or sound of crackling.
  • noun A network of fine cracks on the surface of glazed pottery, china, or glassware.
  • noun Crackleware.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun One of a series of small, sharp, quickly repeated noises, such as are made by a burning fire; crackling.
  • noun A small crack; specifically, a network of cracks characterizing the surface-glaze of some kinds of porcelain and fine pottery.
  • To make slight cracks, or sudden sharp, explosive noises, rapidly or frequently repeated; crepitate: as, burning thorns crackle.
  • To quaver in singing.
  • In lute-playing, to play the tones of a chord in succession instead of simultaneously. See arpeggio.
  • To cover with a network of minute cracks, as porcelain or glass.
  • noun In pathology, same as crepitant rále (which see. under rále).

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • intransitive verb To make slight cracks; to make small, sharp, sudden noises, rapidly or frequently repeated; to crepitate.
  • noun The noise of slight and frequent cracks or reports; a crackling.
  • noun (Med.) A kind of crackling sound or râle, heard in some abnormal states of the lungs.
  • noun (Fine Arts) A condition produced in certain porcelain, fine earthenware, or glass, in which the glaze or enamel appears to be cracked in all directions, making a sort of reticulated surface.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A fizzing, popping sound.
  • noun pottery A style of glaze giving the impression of many small cracks.
  • noun physics The fifth derivative of the position vector with respect to time (after velocity, acceleration, jerk, and jounce), i.e. the rate of change of jounce.
  • verb intransitive To make a fizzing, popping sound.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective having the surface decorated with a network of fine cracks, as in crackleware
  • noun the sharp sound of snapping noises
  • verb make a crackling sound
  • verb to become, or to cause to become, covered with a network of small cracks
  • noun glazed china with a network of fine cracks on the surface
  • verb make a crushing noise

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[ Frequentative of crack.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

crack +‎ -le (“early modern English frequentative suffix”)

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Examples

  • Where I hunt, radio crackle is becoming as common as the jackhammer pounding of sapsuckers and three-toed woodpeckers.

    The Pros & Cons of Survival Walkie Talkies 2009

  • The analogous expressions involving 5th and 6th derivatives are known as crackle and pop.

    Waiter, There’s a Derivative in my Cereal Sean 2008

  • If we burn her, she gets stuffed in the flames, crackle, crackle, crackle, which is a bit of a shock if she's not quite dead, but quick. the audience starts booing and then we give you handful of ashes, which you can pretend are hers.

    Atrios steals my paradgim... Mumon 2005

  • And only rarely does their repartee really crackle, which is what this play needs to fire all night long.

    chicagotribune.com - 2009

  • -- Radios probably shouldn't "crackle" three times in the same article.

    Chris Kelly: Missing Sex Money Mystery Blonde: Day 26 2008

  • What makes these cookies visually interesting is that they 'crackle' on top and the chocolate dough peeks out from the white icing sugar making it look like a crater.

    Archive 2006-02-01 2006

  • What makes these cookies visually interesting is that they 'crackle' on top and the chocolate dough peeks out from the white icing sugar making it look like a crater.

    Chocolate Crinkles 2006

  • Clicks as single discrete random events can be removed by Wavelab, synchronous noise such as constant hiss, deck rumble etc can be elimainated by CEDAR, but we are left with crackle which is neither discrete or syncronous and is only partly removed by either of the above systems.

    FallNet - Hovis set-up in London's psoriasis 1998

  • The word died away in a kind of crackle and flakes of rust fell out of its mouth.

    So long, and thanks for all the fish Adams, Douglas, 1952- 1984

  • If the solder be properly made it will have a mat and bright mottled surface, and will "crackle" when held up to the ear and bent.

    On Laboratory Arts Richard Threlfall

Comments

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  • Friends with Snappish and Pop-up.

    October 15, 2008

  • "In lute-playing, to play the tones of a chord in succession instead of simultaneously. See arpeggio." --CD&C

    January 16, 2013

  • Hey! Read that definition yesterday while looking at glass terms!

    January 16, 2013